BRIEF—Glenmark debuts sitagliptin and its fixed-dose combo, at 'affordable' price

Indian drugmaker Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has launched sitagliptin and its fixed-dose combinations (FDCs), at an affordable price for adults with type 2 diabetes in India.

The company has introduced eight different combinations of sitagliptin based drugs under the brand name Sitazit and its variants at affordable price.

Sitagliptin is the active ingredient of Merck & Co’s Januvia/Janumet, which generated global sales of $5.29 billion for the US pharma giant last year.

India's drug price regulator National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) recently fixed the prices of fixed-dose combinations of several anti-diabetic drugs with a 50% reduction on the patented component in a move set to increase the price war in India's $2.3 billion anti-diabetic drugs market.

Glenmark’s Sitazit and its variants will play an instrumental role in raising accessibility of sitagliptin to type 2 diabetic patients, which is considered as the gold standard molecule in DPP4 inhibitor therapy, the company said.

In 2015, Glenmark revolutionized the diabetes market by launching its DPP4 inhibitor – teneligliptin at a price that was around 55% lower than the other DPP4 inhibitors available in India at that time.