Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (MLNM) has initiated Phase I trials of MLN0415, an oral, highly selective, small molecule inhibitor of IKK2, which targets a major inflammatory pathway. The trial will enlist 72 healthy volunteers to assess the drug's safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic effects.
MLN0415 is a drug co-developed by Millenium with sanofi-aventis (SAN) for the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. In preclinical studies, MLN0415 was shown to decrease NF-kB activation and down-regulate the expression of a number of inflammatory proteins.
Because inflammatory proteins play a critical role in inflammation and drive the inflammatory response to disease, controlling these proteins may prevent or slow disease progression.
Source: Millenium
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