New Delhi, Aug 25 - Pharmaceutical major Piramal Life Sciences Tuesday said it has completed the phase-I clinical trials of its new medicine that will make the treatment of diabetes easier and affordable. The disease affects nearly 40 million people in India.

The P1736, drug molecule as it is known currently, 'is being developed for the treatment of Type II diabetes. In the phase I trial, single and multiple ascending dose studies were conducted on 30 and 22 healthy volunteers respectively, in the Netherlands,' the company said in a statement.

The recent statistics published by the International Diabetes Federation indicates that about 40.9 million people in India suffer from Diabetes and the report suggests that the number will increase to 69.9 million people by 2025.

The drug did not show any adverse effects on liver function and did not cause blood plasma volume expansion or weight gain, the company added.

Swati Piramal, director of Piramal Group, said: 'Piramal Life Sciences aims to reduce the burden of disease by finding new and affordable cures for unmet medical needs. We are happy and proud that we have achieved this milestone in our quest to find a cure for type II diabetic patients.'