Pharmacopeia Completes Enrollment in Phase 2 Hypertension Study with PS433...( PRINCETON N.J. Feb. 26 /- Pharmac...),Health

PRINCETON, N.J., Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pharmacopeia (Nasdaq: PCOP), an innovator in the discovery and development of novel small molecule therapeutics, today announced the completion of recruitment in the company's multi-center Phase 2a clinical study of PS433540 (DARA), the company's lead internal product candidate. The objective of the Phase 2a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of 200 and 500 mg of PS433540 in subjects with Stage I and Stage II hypertension.

"We have made good progress advancing DARA's clinical development. Not only did we initiate this Phase 2a study approximately six months ahead of our original clinical development timeline, but we have now completed enrollment in the study with the expectation of reporting results in the second quarter of 2008," said Les Browne, Ph.D., Pharmacopeia's President and Chief Executive Officer. "As this is the first PS433540 study to include hypertensive patients, we are pleased to have the opportunity to demonstrate that DARA can effectively lower blood pressure in this patient population."

Results from Phase 1 studies of PS433540 in normal subjects have indicated that the compound was well tolerated at all doses up to and including 1,000 mg a day for 14 days. Several studies including the multiple ascending dose (MAD) and angiotensin II challenge studies have shown that PS433540 appears to have a pharmacokinetic profile consistent with once-daily oral administration. In the angiotensin challenge study, 250 and 500 mg of PS433540 fully blocked the increase in blood pressure induced by administration of angiotensin II (AII) to healthy volunteers at least as well as 300 mg of irbesartan, the t
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