Arena Pharmaceuticals initiates patient screening for phase 1 clinical trial of APD916

Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARNA) announced today the initiation of patient screening in a Phase 1 clinical trial of APD916, a novel oral drug candidate discovered by Arena that targets the histamine H3 receptor for the treatment of narcolepsy and cataplexy.

"There is a need for better tolerated, more effective therapies for narcolepsy, especially narcolepsy with cataplexy," said William R. Shanahan, M.D., Arena's Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. "Based upon preclinical data, we believe that APD916 may substantially improve the treatment of these potential orphan indications."

This randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled Phase 1 trial is planned to enroll up to 72 healthy adult volunteers and will evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of single-ascending doses of APD916.