NicOx and Ferrer unveil dermatology drug data

French biopharmaceutical company NicOx says that Phase I data, presented at this year's World Congress of Dermatology in Buenos Aires, Argentina, show that NCX 1022, its anti-inflammatory dermatology product, is safe and well tolerated. The drug, which is being developed in collaboration with Spain's Ferrer Pharmaceuticals, demonstrated reduced skin blanching when compared with three other currently marketed skin ointments.

In a parallel presentation, NicOx and Ferrer unveiled preclinical data from other high-potency, nitric-oxide donating agents also being developed under their accord. The results, which were obtained using validated models of a range of skin disorders, indicated that the developmental compounds have broader anti-inflammatory activity than commonly-used skin disorder treatments.

Ennio Ongini, NicOx' vice president of research, said: "these results highlight the potential of our technology in dermatology and suggest our joint program with Ferrer has the potential to provide more effective drugs to treat chronic skin disorders."