Gedeon Richter Plc. built and furnished a new molecular biology laboratory at its Debrecen site. The investment was part of a HUF 4.83 billion research and development (R&D) project of several years, partially realized from EU funds, which supports the development of biotechnological drugs, the pharmaceutical company listed on the Budapest Stock Exchange told MTI.
According to the announcement, the aim of the research carried out in consortium with the University of Szeged (SZTE) and the Biological Research Center of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (SZBK) was to develop R&D technologies that contribute to the understanding of the mechanism of action of the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s biotechnologically produced protein drugs, as well as the development of side effects.
In the framework of the project, the research carried out at the University of Szeged is connected to the leading directions of the pharmaceutical industry, the developments use the tools of modern pharmaceutical research (nanotechnology, proteomics, foldameric chemistry), they wrote.
According to Richter’s announcement, with the cooperation of the Institute of Medicinal Chemistry of the SZTE and the Institutes of Biophysics and Genetics of the SZBK, progress has been achieved in developing a peptide-based targeted carrier, with which the biologically active ingredient can be delivered into the cell.
The new results achieved in the field of the development of nanocarrier systems and their latest technologies, the search for new indication areas of medicines, and the introduction of proteins into cells can contribute to the development of the medicines of the future, they said.
The future further development of the gynecological product line made of natural ingredients, developed in the framework of the cooperation, is considered to fill a gap in this product category, they added.
The project with a total cost of HUF 4.830 billion was realized in the Széchenyi 2020 program, with a non-refundable grant of HUF 2.840 billion. In addition to a HUF 1.990 billion subsidy, Richter participated in the project with HUF 1.837 billion of its own funds, the two consortium partners, the University of Szeged, received HUF 731.2 million, and the MTA Szeged Biological Research Center received HUF 267.9 million.
Richter Gedeon Nyrt., based in Budapest, is one of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers in Eastern and Central Europe, which has established a direct market presence in Western Europe, China, Latin America, and Australia.
At the end of 2021, the after-tax profit of the company with a stock market value of 4.4 billion euros rose by 33.1 percent to HUF 141.180 billion last year, and its sales revenue was HUF 630.595 billion, which was 11.3 percent higher than the previous year based on the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS). according to a quick consolidated report.
