CPhI Worldwide Exhibitors Detail Expansion Activity

CPhI Worldwide, Paris (Oct. 3–5)-Exhibitors at CPhI Worldwide reported expansions, enhancements in technology, and new projects last week in Paris.

Almac Sciences (Craigavon, Northern Ireland, www.almacgroup.com) reported a £500,000 ($940,000) investment at its sites in Craigavon, Northern Ireland and Edinburgh, Scotland for CGMP production of peptides. New investment at Craigavon includes automated peptide synthesis equipment, preparative high-performance liquid chromatography, and freeze-drying suite. New equipment for small-scale peptide synthesis was added at its production and R&D center near Edinburgh.

BioCatalytics (Pasadena, CA, www.biocatalytics.com) formed a cooperative marketing and distribution agreement with Novozymes AS (Bagsvaerd, Denmark,www.novozymes.com) for enzymes for chemical synthesis and specially formulated enzymes for use in biocatalysis. BioCatalytics also received the 2006 CPhI Gold Innovation Award for its human cytochrome biocatalyst products, which enable the production of drug metabolites. The company developed the products to help pharmaceutical companies prepare and characterize drug metabolites before human testing. 

Degussa (Düsseldorf. Germany, www.degussa.com) developed a second-generation metathesis catalyst for pharmaceutical applications. The new product, “catMETium IMesPCy,” is an alkylidene ruthenium complex with an N-heterocyclic carbene ligand.

DSM (Heerlen, Netherlands, www.dsm.com) acquired Lipid Technologies Provider AB (LTP, Karlshamm, Sweden, www.lipid.se), which owns a technology platform based on formulated lipids. LTP develops delivery systems for pharmaceuticals and functional foods (including dietary supplements) using lipids extracted from natural resources such as oat oil.

Dowpharma (Midland, MI, www.dowpharma.com) commissioned a homogeneous catalyst manufacturing facility in Midland, Michigan to support pharmaceutical custom synthesis projects requiring asymmetric chemocatalysis. The site, which started operations earlier this year, complements the company's existing commercial and research facilities in Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Excelsyn Molecular Development (Holywell, North Wales) part of Excelsyn Ltd. (Newcastle Upon Tyne, www.excelsyn.com)  reports improved transaminase technology to produce the unnatural amino acid tert-L-leucine, a compound used in the synthesis of several drugs.
Also, Excelsyn has become a member of Britest Ltd. (Runcorn, UK, www.britest.co.uk). Comprised of pharmaceutical and fine chemical companies, Britest is an industry association that focuses on process design in pharmaceutical chemical manufacturing.

Eurand (Milan, www.eurand.com) entered into a development and license agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK, London, www.gsk.com) under which Eurand will use its “Microcaps” taste-masking and “AdvaTab” oral disintegration tablet technologies to develop a new formulation of an undisclosed GSK product. The companies expect to begin clinical trials for the product in 2006 and apply for marketing authorization in the United States by the end of 2007. GSK will fund the development of the product, and Eurand will retain exclusive, worldwide manufacturing rights. Eurand also will receive royalties on product sales, with GSK holding exclusive rights in the United States and Eurand holding certain rights outside the US. The pact is worth up to $42 million, depending on achieving certain development, regulatory, and sales milestones.

Reaxa (Manchester, UK, www.reaxa.com) launched its “QuadraPure” metal-scavenging resins in cartridge format for metal clean-up and purification in pharmaceutical production.

Prosonix Ltd (Oxford UK, www.prosonix.co.uk) and UCB SA (Braine l’Alleud, Belgium, www.ucb.be) extended their codevelopment and licensing agreement for Prosonix’s proprietary sonocrystallization technology for pharmaceutical applications. Prosonix is providing a multipurpose “Prosonitron” sonocrystallization reactor system that will be used in the cGMP manufacturing facilities at UCB’s Braine l’Alleud site.

Prosonix also has formed an agreement with the University of Bath (Bath, UK, www.bath.ac.uk) for the commercialization of the sonocrystallization particle engineering technology “Solution Atomisation and Crystallization by Sonication.”

Newly launched in 2006, Prosonix is a company specializing in technologies for predictive crystallization, sonocrystallization, and nanocrystallization used in pharmaceutical manufacturing (1).

Saltigo (Leverkusen, Germany) is investing $12.7 million to convert an existing plant in Leverkusen into a multipurpose CMGP facility for active pharmaceutical ingredients and intermediates, which will include four modular units with capacity of more than 200 metric tons. The units are expected to open by mid-2007.

SAFC (St. Louis, MO, www.safcglobal.com), the custom manufacturing arm of Sigma-Aldrich Group (St. Louis, MO, www.sigmaaldrich.com), reports that its 139,000 ft ² medicinal chemistry facility in Bangalore, India is ready for operation. SAFC invested $12 million in the facility to meet increased demand for medicinal chemistry and CGMP manufacturing services.

In addition, SAFC has been appointed by BTG PLC (London, www.btgplc.com)  to provide chemical development services relating to BGC20-1259, a drug in Phase I clinical trials for treating Alzheimer's disease. SAFC will provide process research and development studies on the synthesis of the drug for supplying clinical trials quantities and CGMP manufacturing of the compound is anticipated by SAFC.

SAFC announced last week that it would expand CGMP protein purification capacity at its facilities in St. Louis (see the Oct. 5 ePT, “SAFC Expands Protein-Purification Capacity,” http://www.pharmtech.com/pharmtech/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=377255)

1. P.Van Arnum, “Prosonix Targets Crystallization,” Pharm. Tech. Sourcing and Management, 2 (9), e15e17 (2006), http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/advanstar/ptsm0906/index.php, accessed Oct. 10, 2006.