Favorable top-line results from Aeterna Zentaris' AEZS-130 Phase 3 study on AGHD

Aug 31 2011

Aeterna Zentaris Inc. (NASDAQ: AEZS) (TSX: AEZ) (the "Company") today announced favorable top-line results of its completed Phase 3 study with AEZS-130 as the first oral diagnostic test for Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency (AGHD). The results show that AEZS-130 reached its primary endpoint demonstrating >90% area-under-the-curve (AUC) of the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve, which determines the level of specificity and sensitivity of the product. The Company is currently proceeding with further detailed analyses of the data and preparing for a pre-New Drug Application (NDA) meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the upcoming months, which would be followed by the filing of a NDA for the registration of AEZS-130 in the United States.

The parameters of the study, as defined below under Study Design, were achieved as agreed to with FDA under our Special Protocol Assessment (SPA). Importantly, the primary efficacy parameters show that the study achieved both specificity and sensitivity at a level of 90% or greater.  In addition, 8 of the 10 newly enrolled AGHD patients were correctly classified by a pre-specified peak GH threshold level. The use of AEZS-130 was shown to be safe and well tolerated overall throughout the completion of this trial.

"We are pleased with the results obtained and we therefore expect to meet with the FDA and work out the content of a submission for an NDA. We believe that AEZS-130 could become the first approved oral test for the diagnosis of AGHD, providing patients with a potentially safer, accurate and more convenient alternative to the current injectable tests", stated Juergen Engel, Ph.D., President and CEO at Aeterna Zentaris.