Acucela's emixustat fails in AMD study

Acucela Inc. (Tokyo:4589) dropped Y1,000 (17%) to Y4,790 after it said emixustat (formerly ACU-4429) missed the primary endpoint of the Phase IIb/III S.E.A.T.T.L.E. study to treat geographic atrophy (GA) in patients with age-related macular degeneration. Acucela said it is reviewing the data to determine next steps for the candidate.

The company said none of the study's three emixustat doses significantly improved lesion growth rate over placebo in the 508-patient study. The treatment also failed to improve best corrected visual acuity from baseline over 24 months, a secondary endpoint. ...