PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Global health vs. global wealth: Looming choice for health firms in developing countries

Lure of profits may divert focus from diseases of poverty, experts say

Global health vs. global wealth: Looming choice for health firms in developing countries
2010-09-09
(Press-News.org) The lure of greater profits elsewhere in the world may divert bio-pharmaceutical firms in developing countries from the creation and distribution of affordable drugs, vaccines and diagnostics for illnesses of local concern, undermining the health prospects of millions of poor people, experts warn.

And they call for a series of measures to bolster international support for continuing the success of firms finding homegrown solutions to immediate health concerns in developing countries.

In a commentary published by the journal Nature Biotechnology, researchers Rahim Rezaie and Peter A. Singer at Canada's McLaughlin Rotman Centre for Global Health say biotech companies in China, India, South Africa and Brazil are making important, innovative contributions to address health problems in the south.

Biotech firms in emerging economies are putting into the hands of countless people affordable products to prevent, diagnose and remedy illnesses of local concern.

Most famously, perhaps, a hepatitis B vaccine developed by Shantha Biotechnics of Hyderabad, India, helped cause a domestic price reduction from about $15 for a comparable imported product to roughly $0.25 today. Experts credit Shantha’s innovative, efficient manufacturing process and well as subsequent local competition.

Process and other innovations have allowed Shantha to bring 11 products to market so far. Beginning with just $1.2 million in "angel" investor funded, Shantha was purchased last year by Sanofi-Aventis of Paris for €571 ($784 million) .

(In a separate Nature Biotechnology article, “India's billion dollar biotech”, published last month, MRC researchers Justin Chakma, Hassan Masum, Kumar Perampaladas, Jennifer Heys and Peter A. Singer captured lessons from Shantha Biotechnics’s success at making health products more affordable for poor people in India and elsewhere. Shantha “shows developing world biotech innovators can maintain a balance between local health impact and financial returns”.)

Other examples:

Process innovations by India's Biocon (Bangalore) helped reduce the cost of insulin in the Indian market by over 40%.

Brazil's Katal Biotecnológica, based in Belo Horizonte, and Labtest Diagnóstica, of Lagoa Santa, produce diagnostic kits suitable for small laboratories and rural settings in Brazil, a market usually neglected by large companies.

Earlier MRC research documented 78 companies in China, India, Brazil and South Africa that have marketed 69 drugs, diagnostics, and vaccines with an additional 54 in the pipeline for HIV, TB, malaria, and neglected tropical diseases.

Roughly 1 billion people worldwide are killed or sickened by "neglected tropical diseases" (NTDs). More than 30 such diseases, caused by worms, protozoa, bacteria, fungi or viruses, afflict the poorest people in the poorest countries.

"Developing country companies are innovating close to the 'coalface' of global health problems, making appropriateness, translation, uptake and affordability of the resulting solutions more likely." says Dr. Peter Singer, Director of the McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health.

But, as these firms rise in financial strength and expertise, with growing links to large multi-national biotech firms, concerns are rising in tandem that local health priorities will take second place to the pursuit of products for more lucrative market segments -- both in the North and at home.

"These trends may, over time, shift the focus of domestic health biotech sectors in emerging economies towards the needs of more lucrative global markets and reflect the priorities of pharmaceutical multi-national corporations," the authors warn.

"As enterprises in the emerging markets take on more costly innovative projects, would they be compelled to choose between global health and global wealth?"

The authors say developing country firms can pursue both if support mechanisms are instituted to enable product development for the poorest market segments "for which a purely entrepreneurial model may not be suitable."

A call to action

The authors describe a suite of tactics to support continued health product innovation by firms in developing countries.

These include ensuring that existing instruments to stimulate global health innovation such as public-private partnerships, advance market commitments, prizes, patent pools, and priority review vouchers are attractive to emerging economy firms.

The authors also emphasize the need for initiatives and proposals targeted specifically at emerging economy firms that can help engage more emerging economy firms in global health. These include: A Global Health Accelerator mechanism proposed by MRC to help health entrepreneurs in emerging economies assess international markets and regulatory requirements, identify commercialization partners and distribution channels, and facilitate access to financing. It would also offer a global health prize to recognize excellent examples of Southern innovation against diseases of the poor. Adoption of orphan drug-like legislation, modeled on the US orphan drug statute, by the emerging market governments, aimed at encouraging entrepreneurial involvement in neglected and locally-relevant disease areas.

New financing sources and mechanisms targeted at emerging market entrepreneurs and researchers, examples of which include: A partnership between the Welcome Trust (London, UK) and India's Department of Biotechnology called "R&D for Affordable Healthcare"; A program assisted by PATH (Seattle) that transfers funds and technology to Indian companies; A grant-making mechanism for small and medium enterprises modeled on the US SBIR program proposed by Charles Gardner of the Global Forum for Health Research A scheme proposed by David Stevens and his colleagues at the Results for Development Institute, which proposes "planned issuance of local currency-denominated 15-year bonds to finance SMEs in the developing world".

Finally, they say there are valuable lessons to be drawn from the success of venture capital (VC) firms such as the Acumen Fund (New York), APIDC-Ventureast Biotechnology Venture Fund (Hyderabad, India), Bioveda China Fund (Shanghai), and Bioventures (Cape Town, South Africa).

"The window of opportunity for action will not remain open for long," the authors say. Taking steps now will "ensure that innovative capacity is tapped not only in the industrialized countries but also in the emerging economies so that the health needs of the poor can be more fully addressed."

"Global health or global wealth? If we act we can have both," concluded Dr. Singer.



INFORMATION:



About McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health

The McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health is based at University Health Network and University of Toronto. We develop and evaluate new models of global health innovation and, working with partners, facilitate their adoption where they are most urgently needed. The McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health hosts Grand Challenges Canada. www.mrcglobal.org

For further information, please visit our website at www.mrcglobal.org, our Facebook page at Global Health Engage and follow us on Twitter @mrcglobal.




[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Global health vs. global wealth: Looming choice for health firms in developing countries

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Researchers expand yeast's sugary diet to include plant fiber

Researchers expand yeasts sugary diet to include plant fiber
2010-09-09
University of California, Berkeley, researchers have taken genes from grass-eating fungi and stuffed them into yeast, creating strains that produce alcohol from tough plant material – cellulose – that normal yeast can't digest. The feat could be a boon for the biofuels industry, which is struggling to make cellulosic ethanol – ethanol from plant fiber, not just cornstarch or sugar – economically feasible. "By adding these genes to yeast, we have created strains that grow better on plant material than does wild yeast, which eats only glucose or sucrose," said Jamie Cate, ...

Greener pastures and better breeds could reduce carbon 'hoofprint'

2010-09-09
NAIROBI (9 September 2010)—Greenhouse gas emissions caused by livestock operations in tropical countries—a major contributor to climate change—could be cut significantly by changing diets and breeds and improving degraded lands, according to a new study published this week in the U.S. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And as an added bonus, scientists found the small changes in production practices could provide a big payoff by providing poor farmers with up to US$1.3 billion annually in payments for carbon offsets. "These technologically straightforward ...

Phoenix Mars Lander finds surprises about red planet's watery past

Phoenix Mars Lander finds surprises about red planets watery past
2010-09-09
Liquid water has interacted with the Martian surface throughout Mars' history, measurements by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander suggest. The findings, published in the Sept. 10 issue of the journal Science, also suggest that liquid water has primarily existed at temperatures near freezing, implying hydrothermal systems similar to Yellowstone's hot springs on Earth have been rare on Mars throughout its history. These surprising results come from measurements Phoenix made in 2008 of stable isotopes of carbon and oxygen in the carbon dioxide of the Martian atmosphere. Isotopes ...

The pros and cons of Miscanthus -- uses more water, leaches less nitrogen

The pros and cons of Miscanthus -- uses more water, leaches less nitrogen
2010-09-09
URBANA – In the search for the perfect crop for biofuel production, Miscanthus has become the darling to many. But in an effort to not be charmed by its enormous potential for biomass production, researchers at the University of Illinois are taking a careful look at the pros and cons of its behavior in the field. A recent study analyzed water quantity and quality in plots of Miscanthus, switchgrass, corn, and soybeans and found that Miscanthus used substantially more water, but reduced the potential for nitrogen pollution to water bodies. "We found that Miscanthus ...

Researchers give robots the capability for deceptive behavior

Researchers give robots the capability for deceptive behavior
2010-09-09
A robot deceives an enemy soldier by creating a false trail and hiding so that it will not be caught. While this sounds like a scene from one of the Terminator movies, it's actually the scenario of an experiment conducted by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology as part of what is believed to be the first detailed examination of robot deception. "We have developed algorithms that allow a robot to determine whether it should deceive a human or other intelligent machine and we have designed techniques that help the robot select the best deceptive strategy to ...

Overweight and obese make up majority in Ontario

2010-09-09
OTTAWA – September 9, 2010 --- New analysis of a landmark health survey by the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) shows that 70% of Ontario adults are either overweight or obese, and have a strong prevalence of high blood pressure that could lead to heart attack or stroke. The research, led by Dr. Frans Leenen of the Heart Institute's Hypertension Unit, adds new information to a limited amount of Canadian data on obesity and high blood pressure. The analysis further strengthens the link between high blood pressure and above normal Body Mass Index (BMI), a formula ...

People learn new information more effectively when brain activity is consistent, research shows

2010-09-09
AUSTIN, Texas—People are more likely to remember specific information such as faces or words if the pattern of activity in their brain is similar each time they study that information, according to new research from a University of Texas at Austin psychologist and his colleagues. The findings by Russell Poldrack, published online today in the journal Science, challenge psychologists' long-held belief that people retain information more effectively when they study it several times under different contexts and, thus, give their brains multiple cues to remember it. "This ...

Study says shortage of FSC wood statewide could lead to price premium for green construction

2010-09-09
It's no secret: the United States is in the thick of a "green trend." Increased awareness of and commitment to sustainability and improving the environment through reduced carbon emissions and energy use have led to more consumer demand for "green" products, including green construction. Even with the downturn in the housing market, a 2008 poll showed that 91 percent of registered voters nationwide would still pay more for a house if that meant a reduced impact on the environment. The same is true for the commercial building industry, as construction companies prioritize ...

Keeping stem cells from changing fates

2010-09-09
Johns Hopkins researchers have determined why certain stem cells are able to stay stem cells. The report in the June 4 issue of Cell Stem Cell reveals that an enzyme that changes the way DNA is packaged in cells allows specific genes to be turned on and off, thereby preventing a stem cell from becoming another cell type. Each cell has to fit in 6 feet of highly organized and carefully packaged DNA. Some regions of the DNA are more tightly compacted than others and this structure is dynamic. There are specific enzymes that change how condensed the DNA is to help turn ...

Child's 'mental number line' affects memory for numbers

2010-09-09
As children in Western cultures grow, they learn to place numbers on a mental number line, with smaller numbers to the left and spaced further apart than the larger numbers on the right. Then the number line changes to become more linear, with small and large numbers the same distance apart. Children whose number line has made this change are better at remembering numbers, according to a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. Remembering numbers is an important skill—in life, which is full of social security ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Reality check: making indoor smartphone-based augmented reality work

Overthinking what you said? It’s your ‘lizard brain’ talking to newer, advanced parts of your brain

Black men — including transit workers — are targets for aggression on public transportation, study shows

Troubling spike in severe pregnancy-related complications for all ages in Illinois

Alcohol use identified by UTHealth Houston researchers as most common predictor of escalated cannabis vaping among youths in Texas

Need a landing pad for helicopter parenting? Frame tasks as learning

New MUSC Hollings Cancer Center research shows how Golgi stress affects T-cells' tumor-fighting ability

#16to365: New resources for year-round activism to end gender-based violence and strengthen bodily autonomy for all

Earliest fish-trapping facility in Central America discovered in Maya lowlands

São Paulo to host School on Disordered Systems

New insights into sleep uncover key mechanisms related to cognitive function

USC announces strategic collaboration with Autobahn Labs to accelerate drug discovery

Detroit health professionals urge the community to act and address the dangers of antimicrobial resistance

3D-printing advance mitigates three defects simultaneously for failure-free metal parts 

Ancient hot water on Mars points to habitable past: Curtin study

In Patagonia, more snow could protect glaciers from melt — but only if we curb greenhouse gas emissions soon

Simplicity is key to understanding and achieving goals

Caste differentiation in ants

Nutrition that aligns with guidelines during pregnancy may be associated with better infant growth outcomes, NIH study finds

New technology points to unexpected uses for snoRNA

Racial and ethnic variation in survival in early-onset colorectal cancer

Disparities by race and urbanicity in online health care facility reviews

Exploring factors affecting workers' acquisition of exercise habits using machine learning approaches

Nano-patterned copper oxide sensor for ultra-low hydrogen detection

Maintaining bridge safer; Digital sensing-based monitoring system

A novel approach for the composition design of high-entropy fluorite oxides with low thermal conductivity

A groundbreaking new approach to treating chronic abdominal pain

ECOG-ACRIN appoints seven researchers to scientific committee leadership positions

New model of neuronal circuit provides insight on eye movement

Cooking up a breakthrough: Penn engineers refine lipid nanoparticles for better mRNA therapies

[Press-News.org] Global health vs. global wealth: Looming choice for health firms in developing countries
Lure of profits may divert focus from diseases of poverty, experts say