Presentations at ATS Conference

VERONA PHARMA PLC - Presentations at ATS Conference

PR Newswire

London, May 15

To present clinical and pre-clinical data highlighting the significant

bronchodilator activity of novel dual PDE3/4 inhibitor RPL554 at upcoming ATS

Verona Pharma plc (AIM: VRP), the drug development company focused on"first-in-class" medicines to treat respiratory diseases, today announces thatthree posters will be presented at the upcoming annual American ThoracicSociety (ATS) International Conference, Philadelphia, USA, 17-22 May 2013.

The posters detail results from successfully completed phase IIa trials onVerona Pharma's lead drug RPL554 delivered as a nebulised aerosol. Thesestudies highlight the tolerability, safety and significant bronchodilatoractivity of this novel PDE3/4 inhibitor in patients with mild to moderateasthma or mild to moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Results from a supportive preclinical study demonstrating the dilatory actionof the drug on isolated human airways and its synergistic action withmuscarinic receptor antagonists will also be presented.

Clinical and preclinical data to date on RPL554, including a recently completedclinical study that demonstrated its significant anti-inflammatory properties,continue to support the Company's view that this drug could become an importantand complementary inhaled medicine for the treatment of such respiratorydiseases as asthma and COPD, either as mono-therapy, or as an addition toexisting therapies.

Verona Pharma is initially progressing further development of RPL554, innebulised form, as a treatment for severe COPD, a significant unmet medicalneed.

The ATS international conference is a key annual forum at which the latestscientific discoveries and clinical advances that are changing the practise ofpulmonary, critical care and sleep medicines are presented.

The title, timing and location of the poster presentations are as follows:

The abstracts will be released immediately following the poster presentationsand will subsequently be available for download on Verona Pharma's websiteafter May 22, 2013, see www.veronapharma.com

For further information please contact:

Verona Pharma is developing first-in-class drugs to treat respiratory disease,such as COPD, asthma and chronic, severe cough. The Company has three drugprogrammes, two of which are in Phase II. The lead programme, RPL554, is aninnovative dual phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3 and 4 inhibitor with bothbronchodilator and anti-inflammatory properties. VRP700 is an innovativeproduct for suppressing chronic, severe cough in patients with underlying lungdisease. In its third programme, Verona Pharma is investigating novelanti-inflammatory molecules, called NAIPs, for a wide range of respiratory andinflammatory diseases.

About RPL554 for the treatment of COPD and Asthma

Verona's lead drug, RPL554, is a dual phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3 and 4 inhibitorbeing developed as a novel treatment for chronic obstructive airways diseasesuch as COPD and asthma with bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory effects. Botheffects are essential to improve symptoms in patients with COPD or asthma.RPL554 is currently in phase II for both diseases.

COPD is a chronic lung disease with significant unmet need for which currenttreatment is far from optimal, as it often has unwanted side-effects and/orlimited effectiveness. COPD is most commonly characterised by fixed airflowobstruction and chronic airways inflammation resulting from exposure toirritants like tobacco smoke. Asthma, which remains one of the most commonchronic diseases in the world, is characterised by recurrent breathing problemsand symptoms such as breathlessness, wheezing, chest tightness, and coughing.The market for COPD and asthma drugs is estimated to be £20 billion [source:visiongain].

About VRP700 for the treatment of Cough

VRP700 is Verona Pharma's lead drug compound for the treatment of cough, havinga novel mechanism of action involving the suppression of cough initiatingsignals originating from cough sensory nerve endings located in the lungs. Aclinical trial completed at the University of Florence, Italy in September 2011clearly demonstrated significant anti-tussive effects with nebulised VRP700 inhospitalized patients with chronic severe cough.

Cough can be a very debilitating comorbidity reported by patients, especiallythose with respiratory conditions such as asthma, COPD, lung cancer,interstitial lung disease, fibrosis or lung infections. It is a neglectedsymptom which is often self-medicated. Consumer spending on OTC medications,including those for cough, grew by 10% over 2005-10, to reach GBP532 million[source: Mintel]. However, there is very little clinical evidence for such OTCcough medications being really effective and it is widely recognised by themedical community that there is a large need for more effective drugs tocontrol and prevent pathologically induced coughing.