Under the two-year agreement, Kingchem will act as an agent to find a US pharmaceutical company to co-develop Sinobiopharma’s Chinese patented new version of cisatracurim besylate, a non-depolarizing pre-surgical skeletal muscle relaxant, for use in North America. Kingchem will also source buyers in North America and facilitate the export process.
Marketed under the Kutai trademark in China, the company’s formulation of cisatracurim besylate is said to be the world’s first that can be stored at room temperature; competitors’ versions must be kept at two to eight degrees centigrade. Compared to other neuromuscular blocking agents, Kutai, which is administered intravenously, is immediate in onset and longer in duration, said Sinobiopharma.
Xuejun Chen, vice president of Sinobiopharma, said: “We believe this agreement is a first step in expanding the international marketing of Kutai to help generate increased sales revenues.”