Validation is only half the battle

The failure of a compound in clinical trials is not necessarily a sign that a target isn't valid, particularly if the rationale for choosing it remains intact and there is consistency across multiple preclinical models.

Axys Pharmaceuticals Inc. last week ended development of a second formulation of its APC-366 tryptase inhibitor for asthma. Yet AXPH and partner Bayer AG continue to believe that tryptase is a good target for the condition and the companies are pursuing development of an oral molecule that should enter the clinic in the second half of 1999...