Coley doses first patient in SLE drug trial

Coley Pharmaceutical , a USA-based biopharmaceutical group, says it has begun dosing in a Phase I trial of a developmental systemic lupus erythematosus treatment. The drug, known as CPG 52364, is a small-molecule toll-like receptor antagonist, designed to inhibit TLRs 7, 8 and 9, which are known to play a role in a range of autoimmune disorders.

Coley's president, Robert Bratzler, said: "we believe there is solid preclinical evidence and [a] strong scientific rationale that validate CPG 52364 for the treatment of SLE, and potentially other autoimmune diseases." The firm plans to present preclinical data at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in Boston in November.