January 9, 2006, Halifax, Nova Scotia – Origin BioMed Inc., a manufacturer of
over-the-counter topical drug products, recently signed a distribution deal for its
lead product Neuragen®, with SciTrove Inc. of Tokyo, Japan.  Neuragen® is a
topical product which provides rapid relief for the nerve pain caused by diabetes,
shingles or other neuropathic conditions.  Neuragen® targets the $4 billion
worldwide neuropathic pain market.
 
According to Wayne Miller, Origin’s Director of Marketing and Sales, “SciTrove
Inc. is a marketing and distributing company for products in the field of life
sciences, and they will market and distribute Neuragen® to health care clinics
and direct to consumer channels across the country.”
 
Miller adds, “We have an issued Japanese patent for Neuragen®, and SciTrove
offers us the best opportunity to conduct a nationwide marketing campaign.
Being an indigenous business area due to its language barrier, distribution
structure, and commercial custom, doing business in Japan is best done with the
assistance of a Japanese based company”.
 
Japan, with the third-largest economy in the world after the US and China, has a
population of 127 million.  According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor
and Welfare (www.mhlw.go.jp), about 7.4 million people in Japan are suspected
of having diabetes.