Dr Reddys & Argenta Discovery progress pre-clinical anti-inflammatory candidate to treat chronic respiratory disease

Dr Reddys Laboratories Ltd has informed that Argenta Discovery Ltd, the respiratory drug discovery and development Company, and the Company, on November 26, 2007 announce a major milestone in their development programme targeting a novel disease-modifying approach to treat the underlying cause of certain chronic respiratory diseases including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and severe asthma.

Argenta's Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Christopher Ashton said: "Just 18 months after signing the deal with Dr Reddy's, the team has already selected the first candidate drug to proceed into pre-clinical development. We are very excited by the exceptional progress this programme has made within such a short timeframe. With GMP material already manufactured we are on target to enter Phase I in mid-2008 and Phase II in 2009. We believe we are first-in-class for this inhaled anti-inflammatory approach to treat chronic respiratory disease."

Under the terms of the licensing agreement announced in February 2006, Argenta and the Company are collaborating to identify clinical candidates against an undisclosed but proven anti-inflammatory drug target and to develop these candidates to Phase II proof-of-concept.

Ashton added: "The programme is also likely to deliver high quality back-up candidates in the near future, which is testament to the overall strength and depth of the approach. This rapid progress towards the clinic is further validation that Argenta's innovative 'fast forward' strategy for the rapid development of new respiratory medicines against well validated, precedented drug targets has achieved significant momentum. We are building a strong pipeline and have the funds to take all our programmes as far as clinical proof-of-concept."