Manipal Acunova to open centre in Los Angeles

Bangalore-based start-up Manipal Acunova, a custom research and clinical trial company, is planning to set up an alliance development centre in Los Angeles in the US.

The company is spending an amount of $1 million for the development of this centre. A top executive from California-based biotechnology company, Amgen, is slated to join the start-up as its operations head in the US.

Speaking to Business Standard, D A Prasanna, vice-chairman and managing director, Manipal Acunova said, "Many multinational companies are looking at outsourcing their research and development in India. We, therefore, will be setting up an alliance development centre in the US, to get global contracts in this regard."

"We will be setting up this centre by next month in Los Angeles," Prasanna said. "An executive from Amgen has already been recruited to head the development centre in the US," he added. The investment for this centre will be sourced from internal accruals, Prasanna said.

Manipal Acunova, is a company promoted by Manipal Group, a major player in higher education and healthcare sector in India. It has a capital structure of Rs 45 crore that includes Rs 18 crore from internal accruals and Rs 27crore through private equity.

"We will be able to raise the Rs 27 crore private equity by April this year," Prasanna said. "Manipal Acunova is also looking at crossing the Rs 100 crore turnover and going in for an IPO in the next five years," he added.

The contract research company is also setting up a stem cell research lab in Bangalore at a cost of Rs 5 crore. "Three Indian companies have evinced interest in sponsoring the research at this centre that will basically help in the treatment of bone marrow transplant," Prasanna said.

"We are also in discussion with a university based out of US, that has evinced interest in providing intellectual support for this research," he added.

"We are also doing discovery research for diabetes in collaboration with a mid-west US-based company," Prasanna said. "The company has outsourced the research to us to cut costs and we are now in the last leg of product discovery," he added.

"After product discovery, there will be toxicity level studies and human trials. It may, however, take us around two years to reach the stage of human trials," Prasanna said.

The Manipal Group of Hospitals that is promoting the company, has considerable years of experience in research. It is, at present, working on creating a database that can be used by cancer hospitals.

"There are different genetic mutations of cancer, which require different treatment techniques matching various genetic profiles. So by making a database, on the kind of treatment that can be used for different mutations of cancer, optimum treatment at minimum cost can be provided," Prasanna said.

"The Government of India through the Department of Science and Technology has provided a funding of Rs 6.5 crore for this purpose," Prasanna said. "This database should be ready by another two years," he added.