Amgen and Guilford test new drug for Parkinson's
BALTIMORE, Aug 4, 1999 (Reuters) - Amgen Inc.(Nasdaq:AMGN - news) and
its collaborator Guilford Pharmaceuticals Inc.(Nasdaq:GLFD - news) said
Wednesday they have begun human testing of an experimental drug to treat
Parkinson's disease that aims to be the first medicine to regenerate
damaged nerve cells in the brain.
The initial human trials will test the safety and tolerability of the
drug in healthy patients and is being conducted in Europe. The initial
disease target in the two-year-old Amgen-Guilford partnership is
Parkinson's disease, the two companies said.
The drug is of a promising new family of compounds called
neuroimmunophilins for treating brain disorders such as Parkinson's
disease and strokes which in preclinical studies demonstrated potential
to regenerate and repair damaged nerve cells.
``We have reached an important milestone in the development of the
neuroimmunophilins. We will undoubtedly learn a great deal about
neuroimmunophilins over the next few months, and, assuming a successful
outcome of the phase 1 clinical program, we look forward to the first
clinical trials in patients with Parkinson's disease,'' said Dr. Craig
Smith, Guilford's chief executive.
The two companies are working on an oral version of neuroimmunophilins
that can slip easily from the bloodstream into the brain. The older
drugs have largely been genetically engineered versions of human
proteins that are too bulky to move from the bloodstream into the brain
and have not fared well in human tests in regenerating nerves.
Copyright © 1999 Reuters Limited.
--
Judith Richards, London, Ontario, Canada
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