Biocon Launches Autoimmune Disease Drug in Australia

New Delhi, Jul 23 (PTI) Biocon on Wednesday said its subsidiary Biocon Biologics has launched a product for the treatment of autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, in the Australian market.

The company has launched Nepexto, a biosimilar to the reference product Enbrel (Etanercept), in Australia, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Nepexto will be promoted by Generic Health, a local partner and a leading provider of high-quality generic prescription, injectable and over-the-counter medicines, to expand access to patients in that country, it added.


Etanercept is a fusion-protein that inhibits tumour necrosis factor (TNF) and is used in the treatment of autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, plaque psoriasis and ankylosing spondylitis.

Since receiving EU marketing authorisation in 2020, Nepexto has earned broad adoption across Europe.

Following the 2022 acquisition and vertical integration of the biosimilars business globally, Biocon Biologics is building on the solid foundation to strategically expand Nepexto into new markets worldwide and further strengthen its immunology offering, it said.

Shares of Biocon were trading 1.72 per cent up at Rs 393.70 apiece on BSE.