Lupin to co-market Novartis' asthma drug in India

Lupin Limited and Novartis Healthcare Private Limited (NHPL) yesterday entered into a co-marketing agreement to promote Novartis’s indacaterol/glycopyrronium (110 mcg/50 mcg) inhaler, a treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), under the brand name of Loftair. While Lupin will use its own specialty field force to promote Loftair inhaler, NHPL will continue to market indacaterol/glycopyrronium inhaler under its brand name Sequadra through its own sales force.
 
Loftair is a fixed dose combination of two bronchodilators - indacaterol maleate, a long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonist (LABA) and glycopyrronium bromide, a long-acting anticholinergic (LAMA) for the treatment of COPD. Indacaterol/glycopyrronium combination is approved for use in COPD in 82 countries including US, EU, Japan, Canada, countries within Latin America and Australia. The agreement helps address the growing incidence of COPD, by making better treatment options available to patients in India.