The Department of Science and Technology (DST) has cleared five industry-institution research proposals to be funded through the Pharmaceutical Research and Development Support Fund (PRDSF) programme.
Among the sanctions accorded, there was a second round of research project being carried out by Dabur Research Foundation to develop novel anti-cancer agents. The institutional partners in the research are National Chemical Laboratory and Indian Institute of Chemical Biology.
There were five institutions involved in the first round of research, also funded by the DST through its Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Research Programme (DPRP).
The second sanction was for a research proposal from Serum Institute of India Research Foundation to develop botanical immuno-modulators as adjutants for vaccine. The institutional partner in this project is the School of Health Sciences, Pune University.
The DST funds have also gone for the development of novel drug delivery systems for multi-drug resistant TB. The industry-institution partners in the research are Life Care Innovations, Gurgaon and PGI Chandigarh. The forth proposal that was sanctioned by the Drug Development Promotion Board (DDPB) in its recent meeting was on developing herbal drug for management of glaucoma. The industry partner in this case is a Delhi- based Promed Exports. Delhi Institute of Pharmaceutical Science and Research (DIPSAR) is the institutional partner. Another proposal to develop a drug to manage kala azhar was also cleared. The participants in this research programme are Life Care Innovations and All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
According to DST sources, the DDPB had considered 10 proposals of which five got cleared. While two of the proposals were for research loans, others were for industry-institution collaborative research.
"This is the first time DDPB is getting 10 proposals for consideration. The industry is showing more interest in the programme. It should grow and the industry should come up with more valid proposals," sources said.