Ore acquires development rights for metabolic drug from Roche

Ore Pharmaceuticals acquired the development rights for romazarit through its partnership with Roche, where it was initially developed as an anti-inflammatory compound and had reached Phase II clinical testing for rheumatoid arthritis.

Repositioning efforts at Ore Pharmaceuticals discovered that romazarit modulates a key pathway related to metabolic function. The company also identified potentially novel therapeutic uses for romazarit in metabolic diseases and subsequently observed a lowering of lipids, weight, and glucose levels in in vivo testing.

The company has filed recently for patent protection regarding the use of the compound for treatment of metabolic diseases. Ore Pharmaceuticals plans to further develop romazarit, select the most appropriate of the potential indications, and prepare for Phase II clinical trials. The company will engage in out-licensing efforts in parallel with development efforts.

Ore Pharmaceuticals currently has three compounds in its development pipeline – romazarit, tiapamil and GL1001. The company cleared the FDA review of the GL1001 investigational new drug and plans to resume clinical trials on that compound later in 2008.