Ardea Biosciences, Inc. Announces New Clinical Development Program Directed Toward the Treatme...( - RDEA806 Shown to Produce Statis...),Health

- RDEA806 Shown to Produce Statistically Significant, Dose-Dependent

Reduction in Serum Uric Acid in Phase 1 Clinical Study - Phase 2 Efficacy Study in Gout Patients to Start in the First Half of

2008

CARLSBAD, Calif., Nov. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ardea Biosciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: RDEA) today announced the initiation of a new clinical development program directed toward the treatment of gout. Gout, also known as metabolic arthritis, is a painful and debilitating disease caused by abnormally elevated levels of uric acid in the blood stream. These abnormally elevated levels lead to the deposition of uric acid crystals in and around the connective tissue of the joints and in the kidneys, leading to inflammation, the formation of disfiguring nodules (tophi), intermittent attacks of severe pain (acute flares), and kidney damage (nephropathy). An estimated 3-5 million people in the U.S. suffer from gout, which is the most common form of inflammatory arthritis in men over 40.

"We are extremely excited to be launching this new development initiative," said Barry D. Quart, Pharm.D., President and Chief Executive Officer. "Gout represents a major medical challenge in the U.S. and throughout the world, and, with no new treatments approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the underlying cause of gout in the past 40 years, there is a significant need for new therapeutic agents."

Phase 1 Experience

Earlier this year, Ardea conducted a comprehensive Phase 1 program in 98 healthy volunteers to evaluate the safety and pharmacokinetics of RDEA806, its lead non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) for the potential treatment of
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