A number of extramural research projects going on in different institutes under the Indian Council for Medical Research and in Universities with the support of ICMR have reached laboratory scale stage and in the process of being commercialized after having granted patents.

One of the key products under completion is an anti-diabetic drug from the Regional Research Laboratory in Jammu. The drug has been obtained from Pterocarpus marsupium and it can be used in the treatment of newly diagnosed or untreatednon-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), sources said.

“An active principle epicatechin isolated from the heartwood of the P. marsupium was found to have protective and restrictive effect in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. Other active principles are three phenolic constituents viz. marsupin, ptorosupin and pterostilbene, which have been shown to significantly reduce the blood glucose level in hyperglycaemia. Well conducted clinical trials have been made to see the effect of Vijayasar in NIDDM patients,” sources in ICMR said. The technology has been developed up to laboratory and pilot scale. Two Indian patents (no. 192163 and 194292) have been granted. Technology commercialization is being explored.

With the help of ICMR support, the Delhi University also has developed candidate anti-tubercular drug. The invention relates to identification of the role of protein tyrosine phosphates (MptpA and MptpB) in the pathogenesis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. An Indian patent has been filed. A PCT application has also been filed with countries US, Europe, Brazil, Japan and Singapore as national phase applications.

An anti-neoplastic compound and process for its preparation have been developed by University of Kolkota. The invention provides a novel anti-neoplastic compound and obtained from the skin extract of the Indian snake head fish, Channa striatus, locally known as shol fish. It also provides a process for the isolation of a novel antineoplastic agent useful for therapeutic application in neoplasia and as a biomedical research probe/tool. A patent has been filed and talks are in progress for its commercialization, sources said.

University College of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, has developed a process for the preparation of an herbal therapeutic product extracted from the pulp of a species Eugenia jambolana. The product is effective against controlling diabetes mellitus. It relates to a herbal therapeutic product for controlling diabetes mellitus comprising of at least one hypoglycaemic compound extracted from the pulp of fruit Eugenia jambolana. Three patents have been granted and two Indian patents have been given for the product and the process.

Product/Process: Non-toxic Resistance Modifying Agent (RMA) against multidrug resistance has been prepared by Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute of Kolkota. Application of non-toxic RMA sensitizes drug resistance cell to anti-cancer drugs and overcome the problem of multidrug resistance (MDR).