PREDIX BEGINS PHASE II TRIAL OF HYPERTENSION TREATMENT

Predix Pharmaceuticals has initiated a Phase II trial to evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of PRX-08066, a serotonin 5-HT2B antagonist, in patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial is expected to enroll approximately 72 patients. The primary endpoint of the trial is to assess the effect of PRX-08066 compared with placebo on systolic pulmonary artery pressure in patients pulmonary hypertension associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease following two weeks of treatment. The trial will also assess the safety and tolerability of the drug during the course of therapy.

Predix is developing PRX-08066 to provide both symptomatic improvement -- through selective dilation of diseased pulmonary blood vessels -- and to also slow disease progression by inhibiting the thickening of the pulmonary artery vessels. The company believes the drug is the first 5-HT2B selective antagonist under development for pulmonary hypertension associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.