Zydus Cadila and Karo Bio AB have agreed to extend their research collaboration with the purpose to discover and develop novel anti-inflammatory drug compounds which affect glucocorticoid receptors in a selective manner.

In early 2008, Zydus Cadila and Karo Bio initiated a three-year collaboration. The parties have now agreed to extend the collaboration for one year. The aim of the collaboration is to design novel, selective glucocorticoids for the treatment of inflammatory diseases that have as powerful anti-inflammatory properties as conventional glucocorticoid steroids, such as cortisone and similar compounds, but with significantly reduced side effects and thereby the potential for a broader use. Both parties carry their own costs within the collaboration programme and share potential rewards.

The separation of the beneficial effects from the side effects of glucocorticoids has been referred to as the holy grail of anti-inflammatory therapy and has been pursued by many. Promising results, generated under the collaboration between Zydus Cadila and Karo Bio by using a new and unique approach, indicate that such separation may be achievable. Preclinical evaluation is ongoing for the identification of the most suitable compounds for further development into drug candidates.

Glucocorticoids are used to treat many different inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowels disease, psoriasis and asthma which together represent a market of over USD 10 billion. These anti-inflammatory agents for long term use could, however, lead to the development of unwanted side effects like e.g. diabetes and osteoporosis. The collaboration between Karo Bio and Zydus Cadila aims to develop drugs that improve treatments by lowering side effects.

Fredrik Lindgren, CEO, Karo Bio said “To date, the collaboration has generated several novel compounds that may have potential as drug candidates. We have decided to extend our collaboration for another year to allow us to continue to combine the strengths of Karo Bio and Zydus Cadila to jointly study these further.”