Patients with type 2 diabetes have two to four times greater morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular disease. Data indicate this is a reflection of the accompanying dyslipidemia, characterized by elevated serum triglycerides, reduced HDL cholesterol, and increased levels of small, dense LDL particles. Currently available agents do not specifically target the dyslipidemias of type 2 diabetics. Instead, drugs for treating hyperlipidemias primarily target reductions in LDL cholesterol or are poorly tolerated for diabetic patients (loss of glycemic control/rebound free fatty acid increases). IDD has identified a family of compounds not previously evaluated in diabetics. The template molecule has only modest activity that lowers serum triglycerides, raises HDL cholesterol, and does not cause rebound increase in free fatty acids. We believe that activity can be increased significantly by modification of this template molecule. IDD has outlined a comprehensive Phase I project for demonstrating the feasibility of optimizing the in vivo activity of the template and fulfilling this unmet medical need. Providing a specific treatment for the dyslipidemia of type 2 diabetes will lead to substantial reductions in coronary heart disease and atherosclerotic complications among the 15.6 million patients with diabetes in the United States. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: Estimated costs for the 15.6 million people with diabetes in the United States exceed $100 billion per year. Most of these patients have type 2 diabetes. Approximately one half will die from cardiovascular disease, largely due to dyslipidemias characterized by elevated serum triglycerides, lower HDL cholesterol, and increased levels of small dense HDL particles. The development of a specific therapeutic agent which targets this patient population will fill an unmet medical need of significant commercial opportunity.
