In an effort to provide accelerated access to Gilead medicines for the treatment of HIV/AIDS, the Gilead Sciences Inc informed today about expansion of its global access programme. The company will be engaged into new licensing terms with four Indian-based drug manufacturers– Hetero Drugs, Matrix Laboratories, Ranbaxy Laboratories and Strides Arcolab for three drugs which are currently in late-stage clinical development.

These Indian partners have played an active role in supplying treatment to patients in the developing world. In addition, Gilead is the first pharmaceutical company to enter a licensing agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool Foundation.

The expanded licensing terms will grant the Indian partners and the Pool Foundation, future rights to elvitegravir, an investigational integrase inhibitor; cobicistat, an investigational antiretroviral boosting agent; and the 'quad', which combines four Gilead HIV medicines in a once-daily, single-tablet regimen.

Gilead has licensed rights to commercialise elvitegravir from Japan Tobacco (JT), and JT is working in close partnership with Gilead to ensure future access to elvitegravir in the developing world.

“Gilead is proud to engage in innovative partnerships to expand access for patients in the developing world, and we welcome new opportunities to work with Indian manufacturers and the Medicines Patent Pool,” said Gregg H Alton, executive vice president for corporate and medical affairs, Gilead.

He added, “Our goal is to ensure that as new Gilead HIV therapies are developed and approved, low-cost versions will be rapidly accessible in developing countries without delay.”

Licensing agreements are a cornerstone of Gilead’s efforts to increase access to the company’s therapies in the developing world. Gilead also makes branded versions of its HIV medicines available at significantly discounted prices (at the company’s cost of manufacturing) in developing countries.