BRISBANE, Calif., Sept. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- InterMune, Inc. today announced that it will be collaborating with National Jewish Health(R)( )investigators in order to help further the research of inherited genetic factors that may play a role in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). InterMune will provide researchers at National Jewish with access to DNA collected from patients who participated in the Company’s Phase 3 clinical trials in IPF for both pirfenidone (CAPACITY trials) and Actimmune(R) (interferon gamma-1b) (INSPIRE).
“This is an ideal partnership that will enhance our chances to make breakthroughs in understanding the causes of this disease, the optimal diagnostic strategies and the best prognosticators for patient outcomes,” said David Schwartz, MD, the principal investigator of this research.
Pulmonary fibrosis has been a major focus of research at National Jewish Health for several decades. Dr. David Schwartz and his colleagues at National Jewish Health, the University of Colorado, Vanderbilt University, and Duke University have been funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute to pursue a series of studies designed to identify the genes that predispose individuals to develop fibrosis, to develop novel approaches to classifying this disease process using genetic and molecular tools, and to develop biomarkers for this disease that will lead to earlier recognition and more effective treatment. The collaboration with InterMune helps make these studies possible and builds on the extensive clinical database that InterMune established through their work in pulmonary fibrosis.
About InterMune
InterMune is a biotechnology company focused on the research, development and commercialization of innovative therapies in pulmonology and hepatology. InterMune has an R&D portfolio addressing idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. The pulmonology portfolio includes pirfenidone for which a Phase 3 program in patients with IPF (CAPACITY) has been completed and the compound is currently in the pre-registration stage. The company also has a research program focused on a pirfenidone analog named ITMN-520. The hepatology portfolio includes the HCV protease inhibitor compound ITMN-191 (referred to as RG7227 at Roche) expected to enter Phase 2b in the summer of 2009 and a second-generation HCV protease inhibitor research program. For additional information about InterMune and its R&D pipeline, please visit www.intermune.com.
InterMune, Inc.
