SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Scios Inc. (Nasdaq: SCIO) today
announced its entry into a research collaboration with Medtronic, Inc.
(NYSE: MDT) to study the effects of Scios' investigational agent Natrecor(R)
(nesiritide) in combination with Medtronic's heart failure devices and
implantable infusion systems.
"We are excited to establish this collaboration as both Scios and
Medtronic have a shared commitment to the diagnosis and management of heart
failure in all of its manifestations," said Scios Chief Scientific Officer
George F. Schreiner, M.D., Ph.D. "This research effort between the
two companies explores the potential for new heart failure treatments
combining Natrecor's unique therapeutic properties with Medtronic's approach
to the treatment of heart failure."
In the first of a planned program of pilot clinical studies, the
hemodynamic and clinical effects of Natrecor, including the effects on
spontaneous activity and controlled exercise tolerance, will be evaluated
using information collected by Medtronic's Chronicle(R) Implantable
Hemodynamic Monitor (IHM) both during and after infusions of Natrecor. The
pilot feasibility study is expected to begin this quarter at the Karolinska
Hospital in Stockholm. Both Natrecor and the Chronicle IHM are currently under
clinical investigation in the United States.
Natrecor is a recombinant form of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), a
naturally occurring hormone in the body that aids healthy functioning of the
heart. It causes arteries and veins to dilate, improving hemodynamic measures
and alleviating symptoms of acute CHF patients by improving blood and other
fluid movement around the heart and lungs without a change in heart rate.
Natrecor is currently being reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) as a potential treatment for acute CHF. If approved for marketing by the
FDA, Natrecor would be the first new treatment available for acute CHF in over
a decade.
The Chronicle IHM is an implanted system designed to measure and record
hemodynamic variables over time (e.g. right ventricular systolic and diastolic
pressures, estimated pulmonary artery diastolic pressure, heart rate and
activity). The Chronicle system is being studied in a worldwide multicenter
clinical trial. Medtronic expects to file for U.S. and European marketing
approvals for this system by the end of this year.
Heart failure, or the progressive weakening of the heart muscle, is the
fastest growing cardiovascular disease in the world. Nearly five million
Americans have heart failure and 1,500 new cases are diagnosed every day.
Heart failure is also the leading cause of hospitalization in people
age 65 and over. In the U.S., 2,600 people are hospitalized every day because
of this condition -- a major reason why costs for treating heart failure are
expected to exceed $21 billion this year.
Scios is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel treatments for
cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. The company's disease-based
technology platform integrates expertise in protein biology with combinatorial
and medicinal chemistry to identify novel targets and rationally design large
and small-molecule compounds to treat cardiovascular and inflammatory
diseases, two of the world's leading unmet medical needs. Additional
information on Scios is available at its web site located at http://www.sciosinc.com
and in the company's various filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
The statements in this press release that are not historical facts are
forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These include
uncertainties associated with timing of regulatory approvals, as well as other
risks detailed from time to time in the reports filed by Scios with the SEC,
including the company's annual report and on form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2000.
SOURCE Scios Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.sciosinc.com
CONTACT:
Wendy Carhart of Scios Inc., 408-616-8325; or
Jim Weiss of Weisscomm, 415-203-0328; or Michelle Choi of Edelman
Public Relations, 212-704-4580
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