TaiGen Biopharmaceuticals Holdings Ltd (太景醫藥研發控股) yesterday said that a phase II clinical trial conducted on its new hepatitis C drug, Furaprevir (TG-2349), was a success.
Following a 12-week treatment with Furaprevir — a NS3/4A protease inhibitor, and a combination of pet-interferon and ribavirin — 22 out of 25 patients had shown a significant reduction in viral load, TaiGen said.
The 22 patients had shown a favorable outcome in terms of sustained viral response 12 weeks after halting treatment, the company said.
In particular, among the 20 patients with the IL28 “CC” genotype, the sustained viral response results climbed to 95 percent, the company said, adding that at the end of the 24-week mark, testing had shown that all the patients were free of hepatitis C.
TaiGen said the clinical trial has demonstrated that Furaprevir is an effective alternative to conventional treatments that include ribavirin and interferons, cutting the required treatment period from as much as 48 weeks to 12 weeks.
The company added that conventional ribavirin and interferon treatments have been found to cause significant discomfort and other side effects among patients, leading to added costs.
The company last year announced plans to form a subsidiary to develop an orally administered cocktail hepatitis C treatment with China’s YiChang HEC ChangJiang Pharmaceutical Co Ltd (HEC, 宜昌東陽光長江藥業) that does not require interferons.
The cocktail would be comprised of Taigen’s Furaorevir and HEC’s Yimitasvir, a NS 5 protein inhibitor.
“The success of Furaprevir represents a major step toward the company’s goal of moving into China’s untapped market for non-interferon based hepatits C treatments,” TaiGen chief operating officer Hsu Ming-chu (許明珠) said in a statement.
The company did not provide updates on further clinical trials and development costs for the drug.
Taigen shares dipped 1.64 percent to close at NT$27.05 in Taipei trading yesterday.
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