Daewoong Pharmaceutical has finalized strategic cooperation plan with Oscotec, Inc. 

Daewoong Pharmaceutical has joined forces with a newly formed venture company, Oscotec (CEO: Jung Keun (James) Kim). The strategic cooperation between the two companies became official on September 10, 2008.

The two companies have agreed that Daewoong will have the selling rights in Korea and Asian countries to BT-201 which is the chief component of an arthritis treatment developed by Oscotec. In return Oscotec will receive a contract fee and royalties. BT-201 will undergo two sets of clinical trials in 2009.

Through three years of financial support from Korea Materials & Components Industry Agency starting in 2003, Oscotec developed BT-201 after six years. BT-201 aids in inflammation problems, the regeneration of cartilage tissue, and strengthening bone tissue.

Arthritis is a group of conditions involving inflammation to the joints of the body which can cause a lot of pain. Due to decreased movement because of the pain, regional muscles may atrophy, and ligaments may become more lax. Within the domestic market 400 billion million KRW is spent on arthritic cures per year and 119 billion dollars are spent throughout the world.

A Oscotec representive stated that “through partnering with Korea’s top pharmaceutical company’s business and marketing capability, Oscotec’s product which holds much promise in the new medicinal market, has the potential to become a blockbuster product for arthritis treatment.” “With continual investment in R&D to develop treatments for bone diseases, Oscotec will push forward to develop new global products.”

Through Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s continuous C&D efforts, the company has made numerous contributions to the natural, biotechnology, and generic markets and has now partnered together with Oscotec which specializes in bone treatments.

Currently Daewoong is partnering with Airtal (treatment of rheumatoid arthritis) and Fosamax (treatment of osteoporosis) and is continuing to expand into the orthopedic and neurological markets. With the addition of BT-201 Daewoong continues to capture various market. Daewoong plans to develop other treatments to add to its current portfolio and R&D pipeline.