News Release
March 11, 2009
Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
Toray Industries, Inc.
Taiho Pharmaceutical and Toray Industries Now Working Together to Develop a ß3-Adrenoceptor Agonist
Tokyo, March 11, 2009 — Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., and Toray Industries, Inc., announced today the launch of a co-development project for a β3-adrenoceptor agonist to treat overactive bladder dubbed “TRK-380” by Toray and “TAC-301” by Taiho.
The new compound, which selectively stimulates β3 adrenoceptors, was discovered at the Toray Pharmaceutical Research Laboratories. Last year, Taiho and Toray signed a contract covering co-development and commercialization in Japan. Currently, the efficacy and safety of the compound are being confirmed simultaneously in non-clinical animal studies. The two firms plan to initiate phase I studies (clinical studies for verification of safety in humans) as soon as possible.
Unlike currently available anticholinergic drugs for the treatment of overactive bladder, in animal experiments, the new compound demonstrates effects such as relaxation of bladder smooth muscle and increase of bladder volume—consequently improving bladder capacity—by stimulating the β3 adrenoreceptors present in the bladder. Moreover, in animal experiments, it has been confirmed that the effective dose of the compound is dramatically lower than a dose which has the potential to cause the cardiovascular adverse reactions which are generally a concern with β3-adrenoceptor agonists. Toray and Taiho are committed to developing TRK-380/TAC-301 in order to contribute to improved quality of life for people suffering from overactive bladder.
Reference
“Overactive bladder” is a syndrome including symptoms such as urinary urgency (feeling a sudden strong uncontrollable urge to urinate), excessive urinary frequency (abnormally increased frequency of urination), and urinary incontinence (uncontrollable urinary leakage). It has been attributed to various causes including aging, neurological diseases, and cardiovascular disorders. The number of people with overactive bladder is estimated to be 8.1 million in Japan (according to a survey by the Neurogenic Bladder Society, 2002). Since aging is one of the major causes, the number of people suffering from it is expected to increase as Japan’s population continues to age.
Corporate Data
Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
| Established |
June 1, 1963 |
| Head Office |
1-27 Kandanishiki-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo |
| Representative |
Toru Usami, President |
| Capital |
200 million yen |
Toray Industries, Inc.
| Established |
January, 1926 |
| Head Office |
2-1-1 Muromachi, Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo |
| Representative |
Sadayuki Sakakibara, President, CEO, COO, and Representative Director |
| Capital |
96,937,230,771 yen |
Contacts :
Public Relations Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
(Tokyo) +81-3-3293-2878
Corporate Communications Dept., Toray Industries, Inc.
(Tokyo) +81-3-3245-5179
(Osaka) +81-6-7688-3085
