Elan/Biogen's Antegren promising in Crohn's

Biogen and partner Elan have reported promising results for its alpha-4integrin inhibitor Antegren (natalizumab) in their Phase II study involving 244 patients with Crohn's disease. Antegren was shown to achieve a significant improvement in clinical response compared to placebo, which was apparent as early as two weeks after the start of therapy and was maintained through the end of the 12-week follow-up period. At the highest dose tested (3mg/kg), 46% of Antegren-treated patients went into remission, compared to 27% in the placebo group.

Meanwhile, Antegren is also in development for multiple sclerosis and, earlier this year, Elan and Biogen reported top-line data showing that the drug was able to reduce the development of new brain lesions compared to placebo, as measured by magnetic resonance imaging (Marketletter January 29). The results from this study will be presented in full at a scientific congress later this year. On the basis of these results, the two companies said they expect to start Phase III trials of Antegren in Crohn's disease and MS later this year.