Source: Eiger BioPharmaceuticals, Inc. & reported by http://www.prnewswire.com/
PALO ALTO, Calif., May 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Eiger BioPharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: EIGR), focused on the development and commercialization of targeted therapies for rare diseases, announced today that the first patient has been dosed in a Phase 2 study to evaluate subcutaneously administered exendin (9-39) in patients who experience dangerously low blood glucose levels (hypoglycemia) after undergoing gastric bypass surgery. Exendin (9-39) is a 31-amino acid peptide, which selectively targets and blocks glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptors, normalizing insulin secretion by the pancreas, and thereby reducing hypoglycemia.
Stanford researchers have already demonstrated in proof-of-concept exploratory clinical studies with exendin (9-39) that pharmacologic blockade of GLP-1 prevents hypoglycemia in post-bariatric surgical patients and may represent the first targeted medical treatment for patients with post-gastric bypass hypoglycemia.
"Increasing numbers of obese patients are turning to gastric bypass surgery as an effective means to rapidly and sustainably reduce weight and as a critical healthcare intervention," said David Cory, President and CEO of Eiger. "Unfortunately, some of these bypass surgery patients develop a chronic condition leading to severe hypoglycemia after meals which cannot be managed by dietary modification or resolved by existing pharmacologic agents. A significant unmet medical need exists and there is no approved therapy."
Read more: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eiger-announces-first-patient-dosed-in-phase-2-multiple-ascending-dose-study-of-subcutaneous-exendin-9-39-in-patients-with-hypoglycemia-post-gastric-bypass-surgery-300265682.html