Lexicon to receive funding for LX4211 Phase 2 trial in type 1 diabetes

May 4 2012

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: LXRX) announced today that an independent, non-profit organization will provide funding to support the Phase 2 development of LX4211 in type 1 diabetes.

LX4211, a dual inhibitor of sodium glucose transporter 1 and 2 (SGLT1 and SGLT2), was designed to improve control of blood glucose through mechanisms that do not require the pancreas to produce insulin. In type 1 diabetes, also called juvenile diabetes, the pancreas stops producing enough insulin to support life. People with type 1 diabetes must monitor their blood sugar levels through frequent measures of blood glucose in order to select and administer doses of insulin via shots or an insulin pump, multiple times every day. With current insulin therapies, even vigilant management of blood sugar does not eliminate the risk of type 1 diabetes complications such as heart attack, stroke, blindness, and kidney failure.

"Results we have obtained to date with LX4211 encourage us to expand its potential application to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, a unique opportunity for an oral therapy," said Arthur T. Sands, M.D., Ph.D., Lexicon's president and chief executive officer. "In this new trial, we hope to see significant reductions in the amount of insulin required by type 1 patients as well as more consistent blood sugar control."

SOURCE Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.