Nastech at the Hammersmith
Nastech Pharmaceutical has commenced a Phase I clinical trial at Hammersmith Hospital, London, to evaluate the intranasal administration of peptide YY3-36 (PYY) in the treatment of obesity.
Nastech Pharmaceutical has commenced a Phase I clinical trial at Hammersmith Hospital, London, to evaluate the intranasal administration of peptide YY3-36 (PYY) in the treatment of obesity.
The objective of the Phase I dose ranging study is to determine the nasal absorption and safety of PYY in healthy male and female volunteers. Dr. Stephen R. Bloom, Professor of Metabolic Medicine, Imperial College of Medicine in London, UK, is the lead investigator on this study.
PYY is a hormone naturally produced by the gut in relation to the calorie content of a meal. According to results from a study conducted by Dr. Bloom and colleagues published in The New England Journal of Medicine, obese or non-obese patients given a 90-minute intravenous infusion of PYY consumed on average 30% fewer calories. All patients experienced a significant decrease in their cumulative 24-hour caloric intake. Furthermore, obese patients were observed to have lower levels of circulating PYY.
Because PYY is likely to be administered at least daily, avoidance of injections may be essential for development of this treatment.
'Intravenous infusion of PYY was recently shown to have significant promise in the treatment of obesity but clearly the delivery issue of PYY needs to be solved,' said Dr Steven C Quay, chairman, president and ceo of Nastech. 'We are pleased to be able to quickly build on these findings with a nasal dosage form of PYY based on Nastech's proprietary drug delivery technology. The potential global market for such a product is significant.