Collaboration to focus on establishing supply chain and securing distribution channels for delivering rare disease therapies to patients across China
BOSTON, Mass. and SHANGHAI, China, April 19, 2021 – Citrine Medicine, a China-based rare disease therapeutics company, and Sinopharm Group, a Chinese pharmaceutical company, today announced a strategic partnership to accelerate the commercialization of rare disease drugs in China. The two companies will work together to build a rare disease ecosystem in China and enable the availability of more rare disease therapies to Chinese patients in need.
As part of the collaboration, Sinopharm Group will support Citrine in building a supply chain and securing distribution channels for delivering innovative rare disease therapies to patients in need. Sinopharm Group has more than 1,000 branches and subsidiaries, covering 388 prefecture-level cities in 31 provinces in China, enabling the company to reach patients in urban and rural regions across China.
"We are very excited to launch this new strategic partnership with Citrine Medicine,"said Yong Liu, President of Sinopharm Group. "As a leading biopharmaceutical company in China, Citrine Medicine is working to introduce multiple innovative drugs to serve patients with rare diseases. Sinopharm Group will leverage our knowledge and our connections within China's drug development supply chain to support Citrine in accelerating the pace at which we can bring new therapies to patients who need them."
“This new partnership with Sinopharm Group brings us closer to our vision of creating the very first rare disease ecosystem for patients in China,"said Melissa Bradford-Klug, President and Chief Business Officer of Citrine."By working with Sinopharm, we will strengthen our relationships with strategic partners across China, including state-run distribution networks, enabling us to more rapidly bring more first- and best-in-class breakthrough therapies to the approximately 20 million patients with rare diseases living in China."
About Citrine Medicine
Citrine Medicine is dedicated to improving the lives of patients with rare and intractable diseases by making diagnosis and essential treatments available and accessible to those who need them in China. Our mission is to build the first rare disease ecosystem in China and in doing so, enable people with rare diseases to live more normal lives. In addition to developing and marketing rare disease drugs, Citrine aims to establish a patient-centric platform which educates people on rare diseases, trains doctors on diagnosis and treatment, and helps doctors develop a full disease management protocol. Citrine's lead product candidate, Wakix® (pitolisant), is an investigational oral drug in development for the treatment of narcolepsy and obstructive sleep apnea in China. Citrine has initiated an Investigational New Drug (IND) submission for pitolisant in the treatment of narcolepsy and expects to complete the IND submission in the first quarter of 2021. Citrine also recently announced a strategic partnership that will allow the company exclusive rights to develop, register, and commercialize Alkindiv®—the first clinically validated pediatric treatment for congenital adrenal hyperplasia—in the Greater China market. Citrine is headquartered in Shanghai and has other offices in Beijing, China and Cambridge, Mass.
About Sinopharm Group
Sinopharm Group is China's leading distributor and retailer of pharmaceuticals, healthcare products, and medical devices, as well as a leading supply chain service provider. The company always adheres to the enterprise philosophy of "caring for life and caring for health"and continues to provide high-quality products and thoughtful services for human health and a better life in the field of medicine and health. Founded in Shanghai in January 2003 and listed in Hong Kong in September 2009, Sinopharm Group includes two A-share listed companies China National Medicines and China National Accord Medicines Corporation,as well as more than 1,000 other subsidiaries. The company ranks 22nd in the Fortune China Top 500 in 2020, and its parent company China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp ranks 145th in the Fortune World Top 500 in 2020.
Citrine Medicine Media Contacts:
Sarah Sutton
Finsbury Glover Herring
sarah.sutton@fgh.com
202-337-0808