Peter, to my knowledge Pralnacas is not yet in OA PII trial. VRTX and AVE announce that they will continue with P development, but any plan how and what is not yet released to public.
Agree that IL-1 based therapy may prove to be more potent than TNF based for OA and some cardiovascular (inflammatory origin) indication. Regards the P38, it does regulate IL-1 and TNF expression, but it is not the only one who control this mechanisms. VRTX failed candidate did show beneficial effect, but we do not know how to compare result with today biologics on market, or to be marketed.
<<BTW, I disagree with you on once-a-month SC injections vs. daily oral. Tens of millions of people already take daily oral therapy for RA and OA. >>
My point was that drug therapy to generate huge revenue in promising IMD market does not need to be oral regime. As you pointed, today oral drug for IMD are not perfect, and as we move toward more specific target oral drug will compete with biologic with more intensity. Also, as we move toward elderly population drug-drug interaction (more common for oral small candidate) and safety issue may be significant bump on road for new drugs. On the other hand biologic have their own problems.
Example is SCIO P38 inhibitor in combination with MTX. They had to start with lower doses and step by step increase to potential therapeutic dose. Hope it will work.
Regards the biologic, we witness progress in formulation and some of them may be active at once-a week, as well as once-a-month regime. So, oral drug should not viewed with huge advantage. It is efficacy and safety that count the most.
Miljenko |
