Recently, the latest published American Science pays attention to the research result of an international artemisia annua grass project. The project devotes itself to developing the improved variety of medicinal plant artemisia annua grass. Now, Fosun Pharma—Guilin Pharma is the only partner of the project in China.

Artemisinin derivative drug is a kind of clinical anti-malarial drug on demand in developing countries and is mainly from partial synthesis of artemisnin. The only source of artemisnin is medicinal plant artemisia annua grass by extraction now and the content is comparatively low. As leading anti-malarial drug manufacturing enterprise in the world, Guilin Pharma Co., Ltd., which is a branch of Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group), lays its emphasis on the research and development in the field. It signed project cooperation agreement with CNAP in September, 2009 and has trial seeding in Hunan in January, 2010, which means the official start of the project.

It is said that the cultivated area can be expanded gradually in the future if planting test goes well. The new species of artemisia annua grass have a higher content of artemisnin which will improve the supply of artemisnin and let the malaria patients get the vital medicine more easily. Artemisia annua grass is the main crop of numerous low-income peasants in under-developed regions of Asia and Africa. The developed species are planned to be donated to the peasants in Asia and Africa which will become their important income source.

As the original organization of artesunate, Guilin Pharma has three varieties that passed the quality certification of WHO and becomes the only direct supplier of WHO patent medicine in China now. The ARSUAMOON (artesunate/amodiaquine compound) and ARTECOSPE (artesunate/compound sulfadoxine combined medication) produced by the company is the clinical frontline pharmacy recommended by WHO and ARTESUN for injection is the first choice for severe malaria recommended by WHO. The series products have been purchased by international organizations including WHO、UNICEF、IRC、UNRRA and the governments of over 30 countries and has been the champion in export of domestic artemisia drugs for continual three years, becoming the bellwether of artemisia apiacea industry in China.

Wang Junpin, president of Guilin Pharma Co., Ltd says that Artesunate drug combination is a flag of China patent medicine internationally. It not only improves the brand favorite of Guilin Pharma in international market but also lays a good basis for coming into international market of other pharmacys. He also mentions that in order to forge artesunate industrialization base that is international famous, the project of Guilin Pharma artesunate industrialization and integral moving started successfully with the support of municipality and municipal government in 2009.

The domestic pharma industry is in a time when feudal lords vie for the throne nowadays and the opportunity and challenge coexist. In the interview, Wang Junping says that as the biggest comprehensive chemical pharmaceutical enterprise in Guangxi, Guilin Pharma focuses on the pharmacy research and development and production and sales in anti-infection and gastrointestinal tract field. In addition to anti-malaria drug, which is fist product, the company has many quality products that are applied to clinical frontline. Now Guilin Pharma R&D center is autonomous region technical center and the company is ranked national high-tech enterprise in 2008. With the increased support of national relevant policy, the company increases its investment in research and development and form a good pattern of production-study-research integration gradually. The appearing on the market of new product flucloxacillin sodium in 2009 provided new profit growth points for the enterprise and promoted the enterprise’s market competitiveness.

In 2010, the company built new production bases of raw material and oral preparation by American FDA and cGMP standard, with the project of artesunate high-tech industrialization and integral moving as opportunity, product structure adjustment as main line and industry upgrade as link. As Wang Junping predicts the future, the building of new cGMP factory will provide the company with new opportunity in pharmacy production of higher quality and international market development and lay the basis of building pharma enterprise that is domestically first-rate and internationally famous and creating international pharmaceutical brand.