Blister packs increase shelf life of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis medicine

September 12, 2013  


Chao Center medicine

The Chao Center for Industrial Pharmacy & Contract Manufacturing, a provider of the multidrug-resistant tuberculosis medicine Cycloserine, announced Thursday (Sept. 12) that Cycloserine Capsules USP® will now be sold in new blister packaging. The change in packaging to extend the shelf life of the drug from two years to three years. Previously, the medication was sold in bottle form. (Photo provided by Purdue Research Foundation)
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - People affected by multidrug-resistant tuberculosis can benefit from new blister packaging that extends the shelf life of an antibiotic treatment from two years to three years.

Each blister pack will provide a month's supply of Cycloserine Capsules USP®, a global drug used to treat multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. The blister packs are now available in new packaging to the global market including North America where it was previously sold under the name Seromycin®. The drug was developed by Eli Lilly and Co. and is manufactured and distributed by the Purdue Research Park-based Chao Center for Industrial Pharmacy & Contract Manufacturing. The Chao Center is a world leader in producing and distributing Cycloserine.

"Increasing the shelf life of Cycloserine is important because it means we will be able to produce greater quantities of the drug and the global health market will be able to have a larger supply readily available for the areas of the world affected by multidrug-resistant tuberculosis," said Joseph Hornett, senior vice president, treasurer and COO of the Purdue Research Foundation, which owns the Chao Center. "We decided to use the same name for all markets to help avoid any possible confusion among the many global health care organizations."

For more information, contact the Chao Center at 765-464-8414 or visit the Chao Center website.

Highly contagious, difficult to treat and a growing threat to global public health, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported in 2013 that multidrug-resistant tuberculosis strikes between 500,000 and 630,000 people each year. The highest prevalence of the disease is in China, India, South Africa and countries of the Russian Federation. WHO estimates that the average multidrug-resistant tuberculosis patient infects up to 20 other people in his or her lifetime, and cases have been found in nearly every country surveyed by the organization.

About the Chao Center

The Chao Center for Industrial Pharmacy & Contract Manufacturing is owned by the Purdue Research Foundation. It opened in 2005 at the Purdue Research Park of West Lafayette through a donation to the Purdue University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences from alumni Allen Chao, Ph.D., and his wife, Lee Hwa-Chao.

Contact: Steve Martin, 765-588-3342, sgmartin@prf.org  

Sources: Joe Hornett, 765-588-1040, jbhornett@prf.org

Craig Davis, 765-464-8414, daviscw@thechaocenter.com

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