Peptech seeks approval for dog contraceptive

Peptech's animal health division has applied to register its medication to control fertility and reproductive behaviour in dogs.

The subsidiary, Peptech Animal Health, said it had submitted an application to the National Registration Authority over the six-monthly, single dose drug.

Peptech Animal Health managing director Dr Tim Trigg described the product as a company milestone and said it would be the first of its kind approved worldwide. Trigg said the product had been six years in development.

The product, developed by Peptech scientists, employs a proprietary drug delivery system as a means of controlling canine reproduction and associated disorders and behaviours, without the need for surgical desexing.

Trigg said the drug was an agonist of the hormone GnRH, called deslorelin. In its natural state, GnRH is secreted from the hypothalamus and causes the pituitary gland to release fertility hormones in both males and females. But when the agonist is administered to the animal in a constant, very low dose, it desensitises the pituitary receptors to stimulus from GnRH, preventing the hormones' release.

Patents for the medication have already been granted in Australia, Europe, New Zealand and the United States, with others pending in Canada and Japan.

Trigg said he believed the development of the drug would be welcomed by most veterinarians because it provided the incentive for repeat visits for re-administration and enabled pet health management schemes to be reinforced in veterinary clinics.

He said approval for the product could take between eight and 12 months.

Meanwhile, Peptech is trialling a product that would last beyond 12 months, along with a similar product aimed at the domestic cat.

Peptech managing director Stephen Kwik said the latest product was a much greater success than the company's earlier product, Ovuplant, which was directed at the horse breeding market.

"This product can take advantage of the much larger companion animal market which has over 100 million dogs in the world today," Kwik said. "We are in discussion with potential development partners to take this product to the world market.

"The next step in its development are trials in the USA to begin the registration process there".

Trigg said the next stage for Ovuplant, in the meantime, was to gain approval in the European and Japanese markets.

- Additional reporting by Iain Scott