Targacept starts new trial for diabetes drug

Targacept will take a drug it hopes will become a treatment for asthma and Type 2 diabetes into a Phase 2 clinical trial, the company has announced.

The drug, known as TC-6987, was discovered by Targacept’s scientists and had demonstrated “a potent anti-inflammatory response” in preclinical studies, and was well-tolerated by patients in a Phase 1 safety trial, the Winston-Salem-based drug developer said.

TC-6987 acts the alpha7 neuronal nicotinic receptor in the brain, which Targacept says help control the pathways for molecules that promote inflammation known as cytokines. The Phase 2 trial will allow the company to identify the best potential therapeutic uses for TC-6987.

CEO Don deBethizy said the drug is Targacept’s first to target inflammatory disorders.

“The preclinical and early clinical profile of TC-6987 ... suggests the potential of this product candidate to benefit patients who suffer from the serious effects of inflammatory disorders and the limitations of current therapies,” he said.

On Monday, Targacept announced it would be starting a Phase 2b clinical trial of a different drug, TC-5214, as a potential solo treatment for major depressive disorder. TC-5214 is being developed in partnership with AstraZeneca. That same drug went into a final, or Phase 3, clinical trial last summer to be tested as a combination therapy to be used with antidepressants like Prozac and Zoloft.

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The Business Journal