DUBLIN, May 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Circ Pharma Limited (“Circ Pharma”) and Elan Corporation plc (“Elan”) today announced that they have entered into a Development Agreement to develop a chronotherapeutic formulation of Tramadol for the treatment of moderate to moderately severe pain.
The product incorporates Circ Pharma’s proprietary drug delivery technology enabling once daily dosing. Circ’s technology provides for minimized delivery to the body during sleeping hours, acceleration of drug absorption immediately prior to the waking hours and the subsequent maintenance of efficacious drug levels for the remainder of the waking hours. Circ has successfully completed Phase I testing on the product.
Currently the worldwide market for pain treatments is worth about US$26 billion and is forecast to grow to about $31 billion by 2011. In the US and Europe the moderate to severe pain market was estimated to be worth about $6.7 billion in 2007. The tramadol market in the US and Europe was worth about $1.1 billion in 2008.
Circ Pharma intends to seek a licensing partner for worldwide commercial distribution of the product.
The agreement with Elan provides that Elan support the continued formulation and manufacturing activities required to seek regulatory approval for this product in the United States and elsewhere. “Elan’s extensive experience, know-how and technology for the development and manufacture of scheduled products for the US market will ensure that we can quickly and efficiently complete all the development and clinical activities required for Chrono Tramadol” said Circ Pharma’s Chief Technical Officer, Margot Foynes.
About Circ Pharma
Circ Pharma is a specialty pharmaceutical product development company whose mission is to develop differentiated novel formulations of products based on existing drugs that provide incremental patient benefit. Circ Pharma has a strong intellectual property portfolio and technology in the areas of targeted and chronotherapeutic drug delivery and a broad clinical stage pipeline of novel product opportunities in a number of indications including cardiovascular and pain indications. http://www.circpharma.com
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