APD668 is an oral drug candidate discovered by Arena and being investigated under a partnership with Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical.
Ortho-McNeil’s initial clinical studies evaluated healthy volunteers and patients with type 2 diabetes in randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials evaluating the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of single and multiple (14 day) escalating doses of APD668. Based on the data from those studies, Ortho-McNeil has decided to put APD668 on hold and has advanced a potentially more potent Arena discovered GDIR agonist into preclinical development.
Dominic Behan, Arena’s senior vice president and chief scientific officer, said: “We are encouraged by the clinical study results supporting GDIR agonists as effective modulators of glucose homeostasis in patients with type 2 diabetes, and we look forward to the results of Ortho-McNeil advancing another of Arena’s GDIR compounds into development.”