Pfizer gets HIV drug patent in India; share up 7.5%

MUMBAI: Pfizer shares rose nearly 7 per cent on news that the global drug major's new HIV/AIDS drug Celzentry has become the first HIV/AIDS treatment drug to get a patent in India.

This is a major development considering the patent tussle between multinational drug companies and patient groups in India.

Discovered and developed by Pfizer scientists since 1997, Maraviroc -- the generic name for Celzentary -- received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration in August 2007.

At 12:03 pm, the company’s shares were up 7.51 per cent to Rs 771.05 with volume traded at 25,629 against 29,938 shares. The stock shot up to a high of Rs 818.95 in trade so far.