Pierre Fabre to focus on natural substances

French independent drugmaker Pierre Fabre has entered into an R&Dagreement with the state-funded national scientific research body, the CNRS, which will be devoted to extracting preparations from natural substances and the identification of active molecules to form the basis of prescription drugs.

The company said that 80% of the extracts will be plant-based, with the remainder coming from marine organisms and insects. A similar agreement with the CNRS led to the development of the anticancer agent navelbine, one of Fabre's major products.