The trial was initiated after the approval from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency [MHRA] in the UK. The company intends to develop GRC 4039, a PDE 4 inhibitor, in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) as the primary indication. Glenmark expects to complete Phase I trials for GRC 4039 by October 2008 and initiate Phase II by January 2009.
Glenn Saldanha, managing director & CEO of Glenmark, said: “We are happy to take GRC 4039 forward into Phase I trials. This is Glenmark’s fourth molecule to enter the clinics from our pipeline of eight NCEs and NBEs, and demonstrates our steady progress in the drug discovery space.”