POZEN RECEIVES PATENT FOR NSAID/PPI CANDIDATES

Pozen has received a U.S. patent covering claims to pharmaceutical compositions that may contain a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and an acid inhibitor, a combination commonly known as a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). Patent number 6,926,907, titled "Pharmaceutical Compositions for the Coordinated Delivery of NSAIDs," covers Pozen's NSAID/PPI combination drug candidates, the company said.

In the wake of cardiovascular safety concerns regarding the Cox-2 selective NSAIDs, physicians are now recommending use of traditional nonselective NSAIDs with acid-suppressive co-therapy to prevent gastrointestinal complications. Pozen's NSAID/PPI drug candidates are being designed to provide this type of therapy with the added feature of ensuring adherence with the use of the gastroprotective PPI with every dose of NSAID.

The NSAID/PPI tablet is designed to initially release the PPI component in the stomach and the NSAID component is released only in a lower acid environment. Pozen completed a 14-day proof-of-concept study with its drug candidate NSAID/PPI 100, which demonstrated it was highly effective in preventing gastric mucosal injury compared with an NSAID alone.