DRUG CANDIDATE SHOWS POTENT ANTIVIRAL ACTIVITY IN HIV-INFECTED PATIENTS

Panacos Pharmaceuticals announced the successful completion of a Phase IIa clinical study of its lead HIV drug candidate, PA-457, and provided preliminary analysis of the results. The study met its primary endpoint by demonstrating a statistically significant reduction in the level of HIV in the blood, known as viral load, compared to placebo.

In this randomized, double-blind study, performed at leading academic centers in the U.S., PA-457 at one of four doses (25, 50, 100 or 200 mg; six patients per group) or placebo (eight patients), was administered orally once daily for 10 days to HIV-infected subjects not on other antiretroviral therapy. The primary endpoint was viral load reduction on Day 11. Other endpoints included safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of the drug.