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New Data Highlight Anti-HCV Activity of Investigational Oral Hepatitis C Protease Inhibitor VX-950
New Data Highlight Anti-HCV Activity of Investigational Oral Hepatitis C Protease Inhibitor VX-950.
About this update from Vortex Energy Corp.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\n\nResults to be Presented at 41st Annual Meeting of the European Association for\n the Study of the Liver\n\nVIENNA, Austria, April 26 /CNW/ -- Vertex Pharmaceuticals\nIncorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) today announced that researchers will present new\ndata supporting clinical development of VX-950, an investigational oral\nhepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor being developed for the treatment\nof hepatitis C, at the 41st Annual Meeting of the European Association for the\nStudy of the Liver (EASL) in Vienna. Two abstracts will be presented on\nThursday, April 27 based on a clinical trial originally conducted in 2005. In\nthe first presentation, researchers will review long-term viral sequencing\nfollow-up data that showed that in patients previously dosed with VX-950 as a\nsingle agent for 14 days, a sub-optimal treatment period,\nwild-type virus supplanted treatment-emergent variants and that sensitivity to\nfuture treatment regimens that include VX-950 or other HCV protease inhibitors\nmay be regained. In a second presentation, researchers will describe results\nof a whole genome analysis that suggests that the expression level of\ninterferon-sensitive genes may be restored with VX-950 treatment. An\nadditional late-breaker oral presentation will be delivered on Saturday, April\n29. Taken together, these results strongly support further investigation of\nVX-950 for the treatment of hepatitis C.\n\"Data from early clinical studies have consistently shown a rapid and\ndramatic reduction in viral load in patients treated with VX-950, with good\ntolerability,\" said John Alam, M.D., EVP, Medicines Development, and Chief\nMedical Officer of Vertex. \"We are pleased to share the results of these\nextensive viral sequencing and gene expression analyses with the HCV medical\ncommunity and discuss the implications of our findings for future clinical\nstudies.\"\n\nViral Sequencing Analysis\nIn a previously presented analysis from a clinical study of VX-950 dosed\nas a single agent that was completed in 2005, viral variants were detected\nafter 14 days of dosing with VX-950 alone. These viral variants displayed\nvarying degrees of sensitivity to VX-950, depending on VX-950 plasma exposure\nobserved during 14 days of dosing. In an oral presentation at EASL titled\n\"Wild-type HCV NS3 Protease Re-emerges During Follow-up After 14...