China

Acasti awarded Chinese krill patent as it eyes Far East expansion

25-Mar-2015 - Last updated on 25-Mar-2015 at 16:17 GMT

Canadian biopharmaceutical krill oil research and development company Acasti Pharma, which is working on the commercialisation of new forms of omega-3 phospholipid therapies for the treatment and prevention of certain cardiometabolic disorders, has been granted a composition and use patent by that the Chinese patent office.

There is an unmet need for well-studied and differentiated krill products in China, the world’s third largest pharmaceutical market, which has been seeing an annual growth rate of around 20% over the past decade

Acasti’s patent relates to concentrated therapeutic phospholipid omega-3 compositions and covers methods for treating or preventing diseases associated with cardiovascular diseases, metabolic syndrome, inflammation, and neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases.

"To date, Acasti has received patents in the United States, Australia, Panama and South Africa for its phospholipid composition," said Benoit Huart, the company’s legal affairs director, adding that Acasti has other patents pending in more than 40 jurisdictions.

"Today's announcement protects a vast market and provides potential expansion opportunities for our products," said Pierre Lemieux, Acasti's chief operating officer.