Landmark multi-million-pound sterling commercial agreement will advance efforts to bring Zephex® 152a from the laboratory to the patient
Runcorn (United Kingdom) December 2019 – Koura, the leading medical propellant manufacturer (previously known as Mexichem Fluor), has today announced a commercial agreement to supply the new low carbon footprint medical propellant Zephex® 152a to Chiesi Farmaceutici for inhalation product development and clinical trials.
“This agreement is an important milestone in the story of Zephex® 152a” says Sameer Bharadwaj, President of Koura. He continues, “Koura is a pioneer in the development of next generation propellants, leading the industry forward, finding the balance between product efficacy and environmental stewardship. Zephex® 152a is that next step forward and it’s one which is aligned with our purpose of advancing life around the world and has great potential for the whole industry.”
Zephex® 152a is a new, sustainable medical propellant that has been under development by Koura for several years for use in metered dose inhalers (MDIs) for treatment of respiratory disorders such as asthma and COPD. MDI products using Zephex®152a will bring about a greater than 90 percent reduction in inhaler carbon footprints compared to current MDIs and results in the environmental impact of MDIs being as low as other ‘green’ inhaler technologies such as dry powder inhaler (DPIs).
This announcement is part of a program to bring Zephex®152a from the laboratory to the patient, a process that requires partnerships between different parts of the medical supply chain. Koura have already committed to a multimillion-pound investment into a new laboratory facility based at their new medical division HQ at Thornton Science Park, Chester, UK.
The facility will be the first in the world to offer dedicated pharmaceutical grade laboratories specialising in the new low-carbon footprint medical propellant Zephex® 152a and will help facilitate the commercial development of 152a-based inhaled medicines.