This is the first of two phase I/II trials to be initiated using the NF-kappaB Decoy (NF-kB Decoy). A second trial will be conducted in Australia and Switzerland in approximately 120 patients and is expected to initiate enrollment by mid-2005.
The multi-center, randomized, dose-ranging trial will evaluate the safety and feasibility of repeated application of three concentrations of NF-kB Decoy to the skin of around 75 adult patients with mild to moderate eczema.
NF-kB Decoy is a highly selective and potent inhibitor of the transcription factor, NF-kB, which is implicated in inflammatory diseases such as eczema, asthma and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
“We are enthusiastic about the prospects for our NF-kB Decoy based on the preclinical data in eczema models that we have observed to date and believe that the drug could someday provide patients with a more convenient dosing regimen and fewer side effects when compared with treatments that are currently on the market,” said John McLaughlin, president and CEO of Corgentech. “Given the nature of the disease and treatment, eczema studies can be fast clinical trials, so we expect to be able to announce data from these trials and move toward the next step in this program in early 2006.”