UPDATE 1-J&J psoriasis drug shown highly effective in trial

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By Ransdell Pierson

NEW YORK, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ.N) experimental treatment for psoriasis proved safe and highly effective in a late-stage trial, positioning it as a potential strong rival to current medicines, the company said on Wednesday.

More than two-thirds of patients with moderate to severe forms of the inflammatory skin condition achieved at least a 75 percent reduction in symptoms after 12 weeks of treatment with the injectable medicine CNTO 1275 (ustekinumab), J&J said.

Patients were divided into groups that received either a placebo, two 45-milligram doses of the medicine given four weeks apart, or two 90-milligram doses, also four weeks apart.

J&J said 67 percent of patients receiving the lower doses achieved at least 75 percent reduction in symptoms, such as red scaly patches, compared with 76 percent of those taking the higher dosages and 4 percent in the placebo group.

About 42 percent of patients taking the lower doses and 51 percent of those in the high-dose group reported a 90 percent reduction in symptoms after 12 weeks -- "nearly complete clearance of psoriasis" -- J&J said. That compared with 1 percent in the placebo group. A substantial number of patients who received another dose of CNTO 1275 at 16 weeks maintained symptom control for an additional three months, the company said.

"The most common (side effects) were a little sore throat and runny nose, or a bit of headache, but they weren't common," Dr. Craig Leonardi, a St. Louis University Medical School dermatologist who led the study, said in a telephone interview.

"This looks to have one of the cleanest side-effect profiles we've seen for any biologic drugs to date" used to treat psoriasis, Leonardi said.

Results of the Phase III trial, which involved more than 1,200 patients, were presented at the World Congress of Dermatology in Buenos Aires.

Abbott Laboratories Inc. (ABT.N) on Monday reported similarly favorable results for its rival experimental psoriasis drug, ABT-874, in a mid-stage trial.

The J&J and Abbott medicines work by blocking interleukin-12 and interleukin-23 -- two proteins linked to inflammation in psoriasis and other autoimmune disorders.

Two leading approved psoriasis drugs, Amgen Inc's (AMGN.O) Enbrel and J&J's Remicade, work by blocking another inflammation-causing protein, called tumor necrosis factor

(TNF).

Abbott's Humira, a blockbuster treatment for rheumatoid arthritis that is awaiting U.S. approval for use in treating psoriasis, also blocks TNF.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson)

((Editing by Brian Moss/John Wallace; Reuters Messaging: ransdell.pierson.reuters.com@reuters.net; 646-223-6034; ransdell.pierson@reuters.com))

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