4th Oct 2007 07:00
VERONA PHARMA PLC ("Verona Pharma" or the "Company") Verona Pharma launches important regulatory studies for its planned new anti-asthma drug
AIM-quoted drug discovery company Verona Pharma is pleased to announce an important step forward in the planned development of its anti-asthma and hay-fever treatment that does not involve steroids or beta agonists.
The Company's novel anti-asthmatic compound, RPL554, is now entering a 28-day experimental inhalation toxicology study to demonstrate safety, before moving onto the proof of concept clinical trials early next year.
Verona Pharma is aiming to exploit a major opportunity in the US$20 billion respiratory market with this compound; many of today's drugs for asthma have unwanted side-effects and/or limited effectiveness.
RPL554 was invented by Sir David Jack, the former GlaxoSmithKline Research Director who pioneered many of the leading respiratory drugs already in use. It is also targeting sufferers of other chronic respiratory diseases, and is unique in not using steroids or beta agonists.
Verona Pharma has acquired the intellectual property rights to RPL554 as a key potential new drug within its wider drug discovery and development portfolio.
Verona Pharma Chief Executive Dr Michael Walker said: "Coming this far with RPL554 means we have cleared all the experimental hurdles to this point. Now we are launching the inhalation studies so as to get this compound into clinical studies as quickly as possible".
The inhalation studies will be undertaken by LAB Research Inc of Hungary, which has already conducted earlier safety studies on RPL554.
Verona Pharma was admitted to AIM on 19 September 2006. Dr Walker is Emeritus Professor of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology and Therapeutics at the University of British Columbia, and founder of other biotech and biotech related companies. Chairman Dr Clive Page is a Professor of Pharmacology at King's College London, and an internationally-recognised authority in lung diseases and inflammation.
For further information contact:
Professor Clive Page, Chairman, Verona Pharma plc: 07971 504931
David Youngman, WH Ireland Ltd: 0161 832 2174
Allan Piper, First City Financial Public Relations: 020 7242 2666
Background information follows:
Verona Pharma plc has signed the contract with LAB Research Inc. of Hungary to commence the regulatory inhalation toxicity studies. This is an essential step in the preparation of the Investigational Medicinal Product Dossier (IMPD) to be presented to regulatory authorities in the near future. The contract covers pre-clinical studies conducted according to Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) which are an essential component of the IMPD and the related application the company plans to submit to regulatory agencies to commence clinical studies in early 2008.
RPL554 is a novel long-acting bronchodilator/anti-inflammatory molecule being developed to treat hay fever (rhinitis), asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Other respiratory treatments also invented by Sir David Jack include inhaled anti-inflammatory steroids. Respiratory diseases are among the most prevalent in the industrialised world, but many of the available treatments have unwanted side effects and/or limited effectiveness.
About Verona Pharma plc (www.veronapharma.com )
Verona Pharma plc (AIM:VRP) is an AIM-quoted drug discovery company that is focused on finding new therapeutic drugs for the treatment of allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and other chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as chronic inflammatory diseases.
The Company is currently developing RPL554, a long-acting bronchodilator/ anti-inflammatory drug (belonging to a class of drugs known as mixed phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3/4 inhibitors) that could be rapidly brought to clinical proof-of-concept for the treatment of hay fever and asthma. Verona Pharma is also exploiting novel polysaccharides as potential anti-inflammatory drugs for the treatment of respiratory allergies, asthma and other inflammatory diseases.
About LAB Research Inc
LAB Research is a non-clinical contract research organisation that provides contract research services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agro-chemical and industrial markets. LAB Research supports the development of its customers' products from three state-of-the-art facilities located in Canada, Denmark and Hungary.
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