Implicit's hep C drug enters Ph IIa study

Immunology-focused biotechnology company Implicit Bioscience says that physicians at fellow Australia-based Southern Health, a health care provider for south-eastern Melbourne, have begun examining the effect of oglufanide disodium in hepatitis C infection. The drug, a regulator of immune response, was originally developed as an infectious disease treatment in Russia before being acquired by Implicit in 2005 (Marketletters passim).

The new study, a Phase IIa examination, will assess the effect of oglufanide disodium, delivered as an intranasal spray, in patients suffering from chronic hepatitis C infection. Ian Frazer, Implicit's chief scientific officer, said that the Phase IIa trial would complement an ongoing Phase Ib examination of a subcutaneous dose of the drug that is being conducted at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane. Dr Frazer added that, because current therapies fail to control the disease in around 50% of sufferers, there is a compelling medical need for the development of new, effective therapies.