Eisai transfers manufacturing of epilepsy drug to UK
Tokyo firm’s first supply site outside Japan
Eisai has opened a new solid dose manufacturing line for epilepsy drug Fycompa (perampanel) at its £100m purpose-built, EMEA research and commercial regional headquarters in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK.
This is the first time that Eisai has manufactured a drug outside Japan.
The Tokyo-based firm has received a licence to manufacture Fycompa from European regulators.
David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science formally opened the UK facilities this week. He said: ‘New investments of this nature greatly improve discovery, development and uptake of innovative new medicines in the UK, bringing benefits for patients and driving long-term, sustainable growth.’
The UK investment is linked to Eisai’s comprehensive neurosciences research and development (r&d) programme focusing on dementia and epilepsy. In addition to bolstering the company's product discovery, packaging and supply infrastructure, the funding will support partnerships between the NHS, UK academic institutions and commercial partners.
Eisai recently presented Phase I data for the Alzheimer's disease modifying treatment, the UK/Japan discovered BACE inhibitor E2609, confirming proof of mechanism for preventing amyloid beta by inhibiting BACE.
This is added to continuing development of the novel monoclonal antibody BAN2401, also a disease modifying treatment for Alzheimer's targeting amyloid beta protofibrils.
Eisai says the Hatfield announcement further cements the UK's role as a major plank of its growth strategy and its continuing commitment to dementia and neuroscience research. The firm has one of the largest private dementia research units in the UK. Around 200 out of 500 staff are currently employed in r&d across multiple therapeutic areas at Hatfield.
Gary Hendler, president and ceo of Eisai EMEA and Russia, said: ‘This exciting announcement reaffirms Eisai's commitment to and recognition of the unique life sciences environment present in the UK today. Manufacturing Fycompa in Hatfield bucks a general trend of decline for pharmaceutical manufacturing in this country.’
Sales of Fycompa are expected to top US$500m by 2015, rising to $1bn in the following years. Eisai is already recruiting additional quality control and production engineering colleagues to support its up-scaled activities.
With four anti-epileptic drugs, Eisai currently markets more epilepsy products in Europe than any other company and is aiming to be market leader by sales by 2015.
Eisai is also continuing to invest in the Hatfield facility and has purchased two additional packaging lines: an automated Halaven (eribulin) line, significantly increasing global supply of this metastatic breast cancer treatment; and a potent compounds packaging line that could be used to package Eisai's investigational compound lenvatinib, a potential medicine for the treatment of multiple solid tumour types.
This additional capacity will raise Eisai's packaging capabilities from three to five packaging lines by the end next year.
