AstraZeneca will focus on developing drugs which acts on multi-resistant tuberculosis (TB) strains in India.
The company in India is working on to simplify the treatment which is complex and lengthy, where in many patients give up before the infection is fully treated.
AstraZeneca which has its research and development centre in Bangalore is also working on compatible with HIV/AIDS therapies (TB and HIV/AIDS form a lethal combination, each speeding the other's progress), said AstraZeneca in its Therapy Area Review. The multi-drug resistant tuberculosis is undergoing clinical trials on humans.
Clinical trials
“Bangalore scientists are working closely with our infection research centre in Boston, the US as well as with academic leaders in the field, and have full access to all AstraZeneca's platform technologies, such as ‘high throughput screening' and compound libraries,” the report added.
In addition to India, the company is also doing research in China to pursue some of its major global R&D initiatives.
Dr Steve Q. Yang, Vice-President, head, R&D, Asia & Emerging Markets, AstraZeneca Global R&D, said, “The company also sees a fresh perspective to develop medicine coming out of the research from the two countries.”
“It is giving researchers enhanced tools and skills required to deliver performance. This is where we are looking for local talent for our R&D centres in India and China primarily because scientists will have a better understanding of the diseases prevalent in their countries,” Dr Yang said.
At present, there are 400 scientists at the AstraZeneca research centre in India and China.
While the Indian centre has 200 researchers working on tuberculosis and other anti-infections, at the Shanghai centre 100 are working on cancer related studies and the remaining 100 for clinical development.