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India Launches Open Source Drug Discovery

Posted by timothy on from the with-enough-eyes-all-bugs-are-shallow dept.

sas-dot writes "India today launched a unique collaborative programme to discover drugs for infectious diseases common to the developing countries. The 'Open Source Drug Discovery' (OSDD) programme, launched by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), aims to build a consortium of global researchers and bypass the patent regime, which makes drugs expensive." Of course, all those pesky research, development and liability costs help, too.

1 of 30 comments (clear)

  1. Yes but mostly No by Chris+Rhodes · · Score: 3, Informative

    The geographical location of the patent (U.S., Europe or China) will exclude foreign companies who are infringing. India can always complain and/or challenge the patents, but first they'll be excluded from some of the biggest markets in the world.

    Also, India is pro-patent when it comes to pharmaceuticals. So it is just as likely that Indian companies will leech off this research. Remember that it is the actual drug molecule that is patented.

    Take for example, escitalopram and citalopram, escitalopram is an enantiomer of citalopram. Escitalopram is patented by Forest Labs, and marketed as Lexapro. Lexapro was created and patented by Forest Labs (lundbeck) because citalopram (Celexa) lost its patent in 2003. Both drugs were designed to treat major depression and generalized anxiety disorder.

    It isn't the research that gets patented. It is the drug. In the case of citalopram and escitalopram, two drugs that are merely stereoisomers (mirror images.)