Successful Formulations

Incorporated in May 1995 as Cadila Healthcare Pvt. Ltd, it was subsequently converted into a public company and renamed as Cadila Healthcare Ltd in July 1996. The company is the flagship of Zydus Cadila Group. It operates in pharmaceuticals (human formulations, veterinary formulations and bulk drugs), biologicals, vaccines, diagnostics, herbal products, skin care products and OTC products.

A strong player in the domestic formulation sector, Zydus Cadila markets several need-based therapies through its different core divisions. Out of the many divisions, Zydus Biogen, Zydus Vaccicare and Zydus Pathline are focusing on immunologicals, vaccines and diagnostics respectively and contribute about five percent to the total sales. Zydus Pathline is the first in India to manufacture and market the diagnostic kit to detect reproductive hormones like Preganendiol Glucuronide, Estrone Glucuronide, Follicle Stimulating hormone, etc.

Cadila Healthcare has also entered into an alliance with Berna Biotech of Germany and Biosidus of Argentina, which have a considerable presence in the vaccine and biotech sector respectively. It has entered into a joint venture with US-based Onconova Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the field of cancer research. This agreement provides for future collaborations in research, manufacturing and marketing of products. It has also acquired stakes in German Remedies that sells tissue plasminogen activator. The company has also acquired the formulation business of Bangalore-based Recon to form Recon Healthcare. It has a joint venture agreement with Korea Green Corporation, Korea to manufacture and market recombinant Hepatitis-B vaccine in India.

Zydus Cadila is investing nearly 7 percent of its turnover on research and has established Zydus Research Center (ZRC) in 2000. At ZRC a team of 200 research scientists are actively engaged in research in various disciplines.

It also has a 26-bed clinical research unit to carry out evaluation of drugs in healthy human volunteers. The clinical research centre operates under strict ICH-GCP-GLP-Schedule Y guidelines and an independent ethics committee monitors the studies.

At the end of 2003-04, three new molecular entities discovered by the company are in the pre clinical stage of development. Cadila is hopeful of filing its first IND in India during 2004-05. It has developed Interferon alfa –2B and is awaiting approvals for its launch. Many other of its biotech products are under scale up or optimization stage.

Cadila Healthcare has recently developed and launched a complex typhoid vaccine. Besides, it has also developed recombinant protein products, which are presently undergoing toxicological studies. So far, Cadila Healthcare has 41 Indian patents and 42 patents in foreign countries to its credit. Out of its consolidated revenues of Rs 1170 crore, the revenue from biologicals, diagnostics and vaccines amounts to Rs 55 crore in 2003-04.