Materia Medica Malaysiana

Cheaper drugs in the offing

Come 2007, Malaysians can expect protein-based drugs to cost at least 30% less when the nation’s first biopharmaceutical manufacturer goes “full steam ahead.”
Dr Mohd Nazlee Kamal, chief executive officer of the government-owned Inno Biologics Sdn Bhd, said the drug development programme that it launched in 2003 was cruising along as planned.
Construction of its RM100mil bio-facility in Nilai will take off in the first quarter of 2007.
The bio-facility will use German technology to produce the drugs.
Dr Mohd Nazlee said it would be based on a contract manufacturer business concept whereby it would undertake drug development jobs for foreign drug companies.
He said the plant would produce drugs such as the human growth hormone Erythropoeitin and red blood cell promoters.
“We are targeting the Asean market where there are some 500 million people,” he told Malaysian journalists here yesterday.
Dr Mohd Nazlee is here to lead the Inno Biologics delegation to the BIO 2005 Conference which will be held at the Philadelphia Convention Centre from Sunday to Wednesday.
The firm is among 1,600 biotech firms – 20 of which are from Malaysia – taking part in the event.
Dr Mohd Nazlee said Malaysia needed to move fast and grab the growing opportunities provided by the industry.
“Our production will only be in full swing after the plant goes through the stringent process of certification by the United States Federal Drug Authority. It’s a complex procedure, so it takes a little time,” he added.
He said the off-patent drug market was growing because many drugs were losing their 20-year patents, adding that this was a new growth area for biopharmaceuticals.
Dr Mohd Nazlee said developing drugs was not only very complex but also very costly.
“For example, US firms spend about RM800mil to develop a drug. To be competitive, we should cut this cost by at least half. We have to work hard in this field and we need the support of the private sector,” he said.
The success of Inno Biologics would be the benchmark for Malaysian investors to put their money in this industry, he said.
The company has projected its revenue to reach between RM80mil and RM100mil by 2010 when it reaches full production, Dr Mohd Nazlee said.
On the problems Inno Biologics faced in Malaysia, he said the lack of qualified talents was one of them and added that the firm was working hard to get the right people.
“We are about 15 years behind and need concerted efforts to overcome the lag,” he said.