Pharmaceutical Business review

NanoBio starts trial of herpes treatment

The phase IIb trial will be conducted at 30 sites in the US, where 1,000 potential subjects are being recruited.

“Given the remarkable safety profile of NB-001 and the clear efficacy demonstrated in our prior trial, we are now able to perform a phase IIb study with doses that are three and five times higher then previously used,” stated Dr James Baker, NanoBio's chief science officer.

“NB-001 safely and effectively targets the herpes virus when applied to the skin, thus making it a promising topical treatment for herpes labialis. Its novel mechanism of action leaves little risk of drug resistance, which is a concern with the systemic anti-viral therapies used to treat this disease. These attributes may eventually allow NB-001 to be sold without a prescription.”

In 2005, NanoBio completed a phase II study of NB-001 for the treatment of herpes labialis. When compared to a placebo, a substantially higher proportion of subjects receiving NB-001 healed within three days or four days. Also, the time it took for sores to heal in NB-001-treated subjects was shortened by over a day.