Roche/Trimeris Report Positive Interim Fuzeon Results

Swiss drug giant Roche Holdings AG and its U.S. partner Trimeris Inc., reported positive interim results from an HIV study conducted with Fuzeon, an HIV treatment the companies have co-developed. The results, presented at the Fourth International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention in Sydney, show that when Fuzeon is combined with with Darunavir and a third anti-HIV drug, 64% of treatment-experienced patients achieved undetectable HIV at 24 weeks. The study involved 63 patients in the US and Australia. "Undetectable" HIV is defined as less than 50 copies per ml of blood. Fuzeon is the first fusion inhibitor available for the treatment of HIV.

Sources: Press Release, Dow Jones Newswires, AFX News, MarketWatch
Commentary: Roche Recalls Contaminated Drug • Ventana Rejects Roche's Hostile Takeover Bid Sending Shares To An All-Time High • Expecting Trimeris To Fall Following HIV Drug Development
Stocks/ETFs to watch: Roche Holdings AG (RHBBY.PK), Trimeris Inc. (TRMS). ETFs: Pharmaceutical HOLDRs (PPH), iShares Dow Jones US Pharmaceuticals (IHE)
Related: Fuzeon.com • Wikipedia: Fusion Inhibitor

Seeking Alpha's news briefs are combined into a pre-market summary called Wall Street Breakfast. Get Wall Street Breakfast by email -- it's free and takes only seconds to sign up.