MEIJI SEIKA OFFERS ANTIDEPRESSANT DEPROMEL IN 75MG TABLETS

TOKYO, Jun 30, 2008 (AsiaPulse via COMTEX) -- MSIKY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Meiji Seika Kaisha Ltd. (TSE:2202) on Wednesday released a 75mg tablet of its antidepressant drug Depromel, adding to a line that already includes 25mg and 50mg tablets.

The higher-dose pill means people need to swallow fewer at a time, and Meiji Seika hopes to leverage this convenience to gain a larger share of the market for antidepressants.

Depromel is Meiji Seika's brand name for fluvoxamine maleate. Meiji Seika developed the compound in cooperation with Solvay Seiyaku KK, which has also licensed marketing rights to Astellas Pharma Inc. (TSE:4503). Astellas sells the drug under the brand name of Luvox and released a 75mg version of its own on Wednesday.

Meiji Seika's Depromel sales came to 10 billion yen (US$94.57 million) in the year ended in March. The firm expects sales in the current year to decline to 9.1 billion yen.

(Nikkei)

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