Biodel, a specialty pharmaceutical company, has announced a long-term supply agreement with Becton, Dickinson and Company, a medical technology company, for worldwide exclusive rights to the novel and proprietary BD Uniject SCF disposable auto-disable injection system for the delivery of liquid glucagon to treat severe hypoglycemia.
Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.
The BD Uniject SCF disposable auto-disable injection system is a small, ultra-portable, all-in-one prefilled drug delivery system for intramuscular and subcutaneous injections.
Low unit costs allow Biodel to develop liquid glucagon filled multipacks that enable users to remove a single device from refrigerated storage every four months to be carried as a go-anywhere, ultra-portable defense against the threat of severe hypoglycemia.
The multipack approach lowers the duration of room temperature stability required for a convenient, portable rescue product and allows users who suffer frequent hypoglycemic events to avoid the need to refill a prescription immediately after using one of the devices.
The ultra-portability and simplicity of the BD Uniject SCF disposable auto-disable injection system may be particularly compelling to active people with diabetes and parents of children with diabetes.
Biodel president and CEO Dr Errol De Souza noted the company is pleased to achieve another important milestone in its endeavor to redefine the glucose rescue treatment standard.
"Adding the BD Uniject SCF(TM) Disposable Auto-Disable Injection System to our existing pipeline of adult and pediatric auto-reconstitution devices will enable us to offer a portfolio of devices to address and expand the underserved glucagon rescue treatment market by replacing antiquated, difficult, and cumbersome multi-part kits with simple, convenient, portable therapies that are close at hand when most urgently needed," Dr De Souza added.
Biodel will develop the BD Uniject SCF disposable auto-disable injection system as a follow-on product to complement its auto-reconstitution devices, for which an NDA submission is anticipated in 2015.
Biodel's auto-reconstitution devices are designed to offer two-year stability for emergency glucagon administration with little to no training.
The auto-reconstitution devices automatically reconstitute lyophilized glucagon and feature automatic needle retraction upon full dose delivery, minimizing dosing errors and the risk of needle stick injuries. These features should make the auto-reconstitution devices compelling products for institutions, emergency responders, and many diabetes patients.
The company is also developing a pumpable liquid glucagon formulation for future use in an artificial pancreas system.
