Eisai heart drug may lower heart risks

Japanese drugmaker Eisai's blood clot candidate E5555 may be able to reduce heart attacks, strokes and cardiovascular deaths without increased serious bleeding risks, researchers say. Scientists evaluated E5555, a new protease-activated receptor 1 inhibitor, in two Phase II trials in Japanese patients to assess the drug's safety and tolerability. The researchers also wanted to determine its effects on major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and platelet aggregation in acute coronary...

Eisai reports upbeat results from PhIII epilepsy study

Two years after dumping its research program for perampanel as a possible new therapy for Parkinson's, Eisai says that it has reaped positive Phase III data for the drug in epilepsy. Researchers say that E2007 reduced median seizure frequency while increasing the percentage of patients who experienced a big drop in seizure frequency. Investigators said that they tracked a statistically significant response for patients taking both the 4 mg and 8 mg doses compared to placebo. Two more Phase III...

Arena shares surge on new round of promising lorcaserin data

With the spotlight squarely on Vivus today as a federal panel gets ready for a crucial vote that could well seal the fate of the obesity drug Qnexa, one of the biotechs it's racing for an approval proffered a fresh set of efficacy data on a competing therapy. San Diego-based Arena Pharmaceuticals says that just about half of the patients taking its drug lorcaserin in a two-year trial lost at least five percent of their body weight. And that's about twice the rate of weight loss registered in...

Can Eisai’s new Alzheimer’s drug fill blockbuster shoes?

Eisai and Pfizer rolled out a new set of clinical trial numbers on their long-acting version of Aricept (donepezil), with the experimental 23 milligram extended-release formulation besting the 10 milligram immediate-release drug that the Japanese company relies on for the lion's share of its U.S. revenue. In a study which enrolled 1,476 patients, researchers said that the once-daily 23 milligram therapy proved more effective in maintaining and improving brain function than the...

Spotlight shifts to Vivus’ Qnexa

Few developers have enjoyed the kind of attention that's been lavished on the three biotech companies seeking approval for their new obesity drugs. The focus will hit fever pitch Thursday when an FDA advisory panel steps up to review Vivus' (NASDAQ: VVUS) Qnexa. All the developers--including Orexigen (NASDAQ: OREX) and Arena (NASDAQ: ARNA)--have a lot riding on the outcome. As the Wall Street Journal explains, the agency plans to review each of the drugs as candidates for...

Arena lands $1.3B weight drug pact with Eisai

With an FDA panel review looming in the fall, Arena Pharmaceuticals has finally hammered out a U.S. licensing pact for its weight drug lorcaserin with Japan's Eisai, and the big payoff is slated to arrive after a potential approval. Arena's stock price (ARNA) surged 20 percent on the news this morning, giving investors a chance to register their satisfaction with the numbers, which arrive late in the development game. The complex deal package includes $50 million up front, up to $160 million in...

Eisai blueprints new R&D center in India

Eisai is blueprinting its first drug R&D center outside of Japan, with plans to invest $50 million in a new venture in India which will recruit 100 people to develop new therapeutics for the global market. The research staff--which will focus on formulation development---will include about 20 scientists, according to a report in India's Financial Express. "The formulation development R&D wing is expected to go commercial next year," Eisai Knowledge Centre president Sanjit Singh Lamba...

ASCO: Lilly tracks partial melanoma response, Celldex shares sink

Last night's data dump ahead of ASCO produced a treasure trove of information, but few signs of any dramatic leap or pratfall. Among the highlights: Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) reported that a handful of patients in a small mid-stage study of its melanoma drug tasisulam demonstrated a partial response--in which a tumor or lesion shrank--to the therapy. Tested in patients with metastatic melanoma, a virtual death sentence, 24 of 68 patients experienced no disease progression after two treatment...