Hovione announces filing of patent for new powder inhaler

Hovione announced today the international filing of its latest patent covering a new, highly efficient dry powder inhaler (DPI), XCaps.

XCaps fills a void in the pulmonary inhalation market, as a device which combines high efficiency in powder dispersion with ease of use. Lung fractions in excess of 70% have been achieved, from a device which only requires two steps to inhalation and which only has two components plus a dust cover. This makes XCaps highly suited for inhalation applications where minimal training of patients is desirable and has the versatility to treat almost all pulmonary diseases, including asthma, COPD and infection.

XCaps follows on the heels of another successful Hovione DPI, TwinCaps®, which was developed specifically for an influenza application and is licensed to Daiichi Sankyo and Biota for this application. Daiichi Sankyo launched Inavir® in the Japanese market in October 2010 and monthly sales in Japan of this TwinCaps®-delivered neuraminidase inhibitor since then have surpassed those of Roche’s Tamiflu® (1, 2).

Hovione is offering XCaps in optional conjunction with its drug product development program, allowing potential licensees to take their candidate drugs from the API stage all the way to the unit dose, under one roof. “We give our customers an edge in speed of development because we are perhaps the only independent company developing DPIs with expertise in every aspect of the inhaled drug development process”, said Peter Villax, Vice-President and co-inventor of the device.

Phil Nelson, Business Development Manager, said “Hovione has wide-ranging expertise in the field of inhalation products. With our core API process development and manufacturing expertise, we can manufacture pharmaceutical ingredients where the final crystallization step produces pulmonary delivery-friendly particles. Alternatively, we can use other particle formulation technologies, such as spray-drying and we are currently pioneering new particle technologies for stable, large dose delivery.” Hovione is currently executing inhaled drug development projects for 5 pharmaceutical companies, involving API process development, particle engineering, formulation and clinical supplies.

About Hovione

Hovione is an international company with over 50 years’ experience in Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient development and compliant manufacture. With four FDA inspected sites in the U.S., China, Ireland, and Portugal, the company focuses on the most demanding customers, in the most regulated markets. The company also offers integrated API, particle design and formulation development and manufacturing. In the inhalation area, Hovione is the only independent company offering such a broad range of services.

More about XCaps at www.hovione.com

Sources:

https://www.biota.com.au/uploaded/154/1021733_76openbriefing-ceoonoutlo.pdf
FY2010 Consolidated Financial Overview, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., February 2, 2011

Contacts at Hovione

Phil Nelson, PhD
Business Development Manager
pnelson@hovione.com
+351 219 847 619

Isabel Pina
Corporate Communications
ipina@hovione.com
+351 21 982 9362

In an interview with Executiva, a portuguese media outlet focused on women´s leadership, Diane Villax, co-founder and long-standing leader of Hovione, reflects on her journey and the company’s development over more than six decades. Diane Villax’s career began at a time when few women worked outside the home. At 19, she joined a trading company as a foreign languages correspondent, where she developed essential business skills — including commercial correspondence, banking and export procedures — that later proved instrumental in helping her husband, Ivan Villax, establish Hovione in 1959. From its earliest days operating in the family home in Lisbon, Hovione adopted an international outlook. The company’s first major customers were in Japan, setting demanding quality standards that helped shape its long-term position in global markets. Over the following decades, Hovione expanded its footprint with the construction of its first manufacturing site in Loures (1969), followed by expansion to Macau (1986), the United States (New Jersey, early 2000s) and Ireland (Cork). The company grew into a global organization with more than 2,500 employees — including over 300 scientists — and a reputation as a preferred supplier to leading pharmaceutical companies worldwide. Throughout the interview, Diane highlights the values that have guided the company’s development: a commitment to excellence, a strong work ethic, and a focus on quality and long-term relationships. Although she did not have formal business training, she learned “on the job” and brought discipline, precision and structure to her role — particularly in the company’s early financial and administrative leadership. Now in her nineties and an active member of Hovione’s Board of Directors, Diane Villax remains engaged with the company’s evolution and governance, reflecting a continued commitment to its long-term development. Her story reflects entrepreneurial drive, resilience and long-term leadership — and offers insight into the values that have shaped Hovione’s trajectory for more than six decades. Read the full interview at Executiva.pt (in portuguese).

Article

Executiva, 23 February 2026