Vantia Therapeutics' Lead Candidate VA106483 Demonstrates Positive Anti-diuretic Effect in Phase IIa Trial i...( SOUTHAMPTON England June 29 /- Va...),Health

SOUTHAMPTON, England, June 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Vantia Therapeutics, an emerging pharmaceutical company developing novel, small molecule drugs targeting large, underserved medical markets, announces positive results from a Phase IIa clinical trial of its lead development compound VA106483 for nocturia. The trial showed that oral VA106483 was successful in producing a predictable and sustained anti-diuretic effect in patients, as determined by increased osmolality and decreased urine output. The study also found that VA106483 was generally well tolerated among the patient population.

Nocturia (defined as waking frequently to urinate at night thereby disturbing sleep significantly) is a common condition, with prevalence increasing markedly with age. It is often the presenting symptom in men with benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) and affects at least 70% of BPH patients. There is currently no adequate treatment for nocturia and it represents a potential market estimated at more than US$500 million.

VA106483 is a novel small molecule drug candidate that exerts its effect directly in the kidney by binding to vasopressin (V2) receptors, which regulate water balance. It was discovered by Vantia from its extensive drug candidate library.

The double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-response study was designed to investigate the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of single and repeated oral doses of VA106483. The trial involved 27 elderly men aged 65 years or more with a history of nocturia.

Based on these results, Vantia now plans to advance VA106483 into a larger Phase IIb clinical efficacy study in the second half of 2009.

Dr Jim Phillips, CEO of Vantia Therapeutics, said 'VA106483 was discovered and has been developed by Vantia based on its small molecule drug development expertise and is the first of several potentially high-value drug candidates in our pipeline. The c
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