Diabetes drug reaches phase III trials

Tue, 13 Sep 2011
Pharma company Takeda has announced that their type 2 diabetes drug TAK-875, which acts to increase insulin secretion in a glucose-dependent manner, has moved on to phase III clinical trials.

The first-in-class diabetes drug has been developed to help provide patients with type 2 diabetes with improved glycaemic control and a reduced risk of inducing hypoglycaemia. The company have said that the treatment will be the first GPR-40 agonist to reach clinical development.

The action of the drug means it targets cell surface receptors called G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) that are expressed in pancreatic islet cells. GPCR help to manage levels of blood glucose and blood pressure in the body.

The phase III clinical trials will involve multi-centre, double-blind controlled testing to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the drug when taken orally compared with a placebo, and will be carried out on patients with type 2 diabetes who are not currently getting proper glycaemic control through diet and exercise therapies.

Nancy Joseph-Ridge, corporate officer and general manager of the pharmaceutical development division at Takeda, commented "We are developing TAK-875 globally, with Japan being the first region to begin phase III trials. By doing so, this will provide a new diabetes treatment option for patients and healthcare professionals as efficiently as possible."

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