Print（PDF/49KB） Oct. 04, 2010 Products
Notice of launching of LONASEN in Korea
Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Osaka, Japan; President: Masayo Tada) announces the launching of LONASEN®, an antipsychotic agent, as of October 1, 2010 in Korea through Bukwang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a Korean licensee of this drug.
LONASEN® is an antipsychotic agent with novel structure, invented by Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma and launched in Japan in April 2008. This product is characterized by its strong blocking action and high selectivity against dopamine-2 receptors and serotonin-2 receptors. It has stronger blocking action to dopamine-2 receptors than to serotonin-2 receptors. In clinical tests in Japan, this drug showed efficacy on not only positive symptoms of schizophrenia (such as hallucinations and delusions), but also negative symptoms (such as flat affect and hypobulia). This drug also showed a low incidence of adverse reactions such as extrapyramidal symptoms, weight gain or hyperprolactinemia.
Bukwang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. is a pharmaceutical manufacturer in Korea, established in 1960 with psychoneurotic area as one of their priority business areas. We granted them a license to develop and sell this drug in Korea, under which they developed this drug in Korea. We expect to attain a market penetration for LONASEN® in Korea and simultaneously contribute to treatment of patients of schizophrenia in that country in close cooperation with Bukwang.
In Japan, we place emphasis on LONASEN® as one of the Company's three strategically important products, increasing the number of MRs dedicated to CNS from 144 to about 200 as of October 1, 2010 and further serving in providing medical information, while in China, Sumitomo Pharmaceuticals (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. has begun the development procedures with a plan to start clinical studies in first half of 2010.
(Reference)
| Company name: | Bukwang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Head office: | 398-1, Daebang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, Korea |
| Established: | October 1960 |
| President: | Sung-Koo Lee |
| The number of employees: | about 570 (as of September30, 2010) |
| Sales: | 170.8 billion won (for fiscal year ended March 31, 2010) |
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