Promising results for diabetic nephropathy drug

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A clinical trial shows that patients with diabetic kidney disease improve if given a new drug on top of standard treatment.
Diabetic nephropathy - sometimes also known as diabetic kidney disease - is one of the commonest complications of diabetes. It affects up to 40 per cent of those with diabetes and might progress to kidney failure.

Researchers at Zell am See Hospital, Austria, now report on a trial of a new drug called SPP301 in patients with diabetic nephropathy. SPP301 is a endothelin-A-receptor antagonist, a relatively new class of drug never before used in diabetic nephropathy.

In the trial, 287 patients received either the drug or a placebo on top of their usual treatment. After 12 weeks, those on the drug showed a decrease in cholesterol levels and a decrease in protein in their urine. The latter, in particular, indicates an improvement in kidney function. These results are very promising and on this basis, SPP301 has now been taken into a further clinical trial.

Source
American Society of Nephrology meeting 12th November 2005

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