Biocon releases data on its oral insulin drug

Biocon, a Bangalore-based biotech company, has presented the results of phase-I clinical studies on its oral insulin product 'IN-105' at the European Association for Study of Diabetes (EASD) meeting held in Amsterdam on Friday.

IN-105 is an analog of insulin, proprietary to Biocon. The product has properties that makes it feasible for delivery in tablet form at room temperature.

The company said that during the phase-I clinical studies, healthy volunteers were administered IN-105 in the form of a tablet. The human clinical data on IN-105 was presented at the session on novel therapies. Based on these results, the company intends to develop this molecule through further trials.

Commenting on the development, Biocon CMD Kiran Mazumdar Shaw said, "This is indeed an encouraging step towards our efforts of bringing an oral insulin to diabetic patients across the world. IN-105 promises to be a significant value differentiator in the company's quest for global leadership in the insulin segment."

Biocon has carried out all its development for this molecule, including clinical development at its facilities in Bangalore. It has also recently obtained approval from Swedish medical authorities to carry out phase-I human clamp studies of India for IN-105.

The Swedish trial will be carried out at the Karolinska Institute Clinical Research Unit and will be focused on obtaining more pharmacological understanding of the mode of action of IN-105.