Cadila Healthcare gets nod for H1N1 vaccine in India

Drug firm Zydus Cadila today said that it has received approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to market H1N1 (swine flu) vaccines in the country.

"With this, Zydus Cadila will become the first Indian pharma company to launch the vaccine. It will be marketed under the brand name VaxiFlu-S," the company said in a statement.

VaxiFlu-S will be marketed by Vaxxicare, a division of the group that focuses on preventives. A dedicated taskforce has also been set up to market the vaccine, it added.

"The launch of VaxiFlu-S gives added thrust to our objective of emerging as a strong player in the area of preventives," Zydus Cadila chairman and managing director Pankaj R Patel said.

Zydus Cadila's egg-based inactivated vaccine has been developed by experts at the company's Vaccine Technology Centre (VTC) in Ahmedabad. VTC further plans to develop a wide spectrum of vaccines against bacterial, viral and protozoal infections, it added.

"With the development and launch of VaxiFlu–S, Zydus has now proved its capabilities in researching, developing and manufacturing safe and efficacious vaccines," the company said.

As per the information available, 23 per cent of the 1.39 lakh people tested for flu-like symptoms in the country had been diagnosed with swine flu. "The demand for the H1N1 vaccine in India is estimated to touch 50-60 million doses in the initial phase," the company said.

Currently, the H1N1 vaccine market is estimated to be valued at $676 million. The market is expected to cross the $7 billion mark by 2011.