China-based generic pharmaceutical company Simcere has entered into an agreement to acquire an additional 10 percent equity interest in Shandong Simcere Medgenn Bio-Pharmaceutical or Shandong Simcere Medgenn.

Simcere has agreed to pay approximately $3.5 million in cash for the 10 percent stake, and its total equity interest in Shandong Simcere Medgenn will reach 90 percent upon completion of the transaction.

Mr Jinsheng Ren, Chairman and CEO of Simcere, said, “We are very pleased to acquire an additional 10 percent equity interest in Shandong Simcere Medgenn. We believe that the cancer drug Endu has significant market potential and have increased our stake in Shandong Simcere Medgenn accordingly because we believe that it will bring additional value to our shareholders. Our R&D team has initiated multiple Endu-related research projects. We plan to further strengthen and accelerate our collaboration with domestic and international research institutions to explore potential indications for Endu, including the treatment of liver cancer, stomach cancer, colon cancer and breast cancer.”