Takeda’s Diabetes Drug Gets U.S. Approval

Tokyo, Aug. 30 (Jiji Press)–Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. said Tuesday it has obtained approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to market a tablet drug for type 2 diabetes.

The Japanese drug maker will start selling the drug, Actoplus Met, in the United States in October through its subsidiary Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America Inc., it said.

Actoplus Met combines pioglitazone and metformin, two widely used diabetes medications, in a single tablet. Pioglitazone, already marketed as Actos by Takeda, directly targets insulin resistance, while metformin reduces the amount of glucose produced by the liver.

The two substances work in combination to help patients with type 2 diabetes, a leading lifestyle disease, manage their plasma glucose levels, the company said.END