The Singapore-based Novartis Institute of Tropical Diseases (NITD), aimed to discover novel treatments and prevention methods for major neglected tropical diseases, would take two compounds to the clinical trial stage within the next three years and one novel compound to the commercialization stage by 2012, according to Mae Shieh, head, global partnership, NITD.

NITD, started in 2003 with initial disease focus on tuberculosis and dengue fever, is currently working on X-ray crystal structures of 2 dengue proteins and one TB protein and has done high throughput virtual screening/ docking on 2 dengue proteins. Novartis aims to make treatments readily available to poor patients without profit in developing countries endemic to specific diseases and the US $ 122 million total cost of NITD is shared by Novartis and Singapore Economic Development Board, said Mae Shieh during a lecture on ‘globalisation of R&D through effective partnerships’ as part of IBC’s three-day conference and exhibition on ‘Drug Discovery to Clinical Trials’ in Mumbai.

Dengue fever is endemic in more than 100 countries and two fifths of the world population is at risk from dengue. WHO estimates there may be 500 million cases of dengue infection every year, but currently no antiviral treatments are available. In the case of Tuberculosis, there is an urgent need for new and better drugs as 50 million TB patients have developed resistance to existing drugs. About 9 million cases are detected per annum and 2 million deaths happen due to TB every year.

It is necessary to improve drug discovery capabilities of developing countries to reduce disease burden in developing countries, which is about 1.2 million disability adjusted life years (DALY) in the developing countries instead of just over one lakh in developed countries. Developing countries are able to access only drugs worth $ 57 billion, and Africa only $ 5 billion, while the developed countries account for $ 293 billion of the world pharma market, added Mae Shieh.