ChemoCentryx, Inc., today announced the initiation of a Phase I clinical trial of CCX832, an orally-administered small molecule that is a potent and selective inhibitor of the chemoattractant receptor, ChemR23. This receptor is known to regulate inflammatory cells in disease such as psoriasis. CCX832 is the fourth and final drug candidate discovered and developed by ChemoCentryx under the Company's alliance with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to identify molecules targeting four specific chemokine and chemoattractant receptors. The initiation of this Phase I clinical trial triggered a $10 million milestone payment from GSK.
"With the successful conclusion of the discovery phase of our GSK alliance, we are intensifying and expanding our efforts in our other ongoing programs that are entirely outside the GSK alliance," said Thomas J. Schall, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of ChemoCentryx. "These programs include a novel drug targeting the chemokine receptor CCR2, which has just successfully completed a Phase 2 clinical trial and a cancer program targeting the receptor CXCR7, which was discovered by ChemoCentryx scientists. In addition, we are advancing programs in liver and kidney disease and in the next generation of medicines for inflammatory bowel disease, all of which offer vast opportunities in largely unmet medical needs."
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