NZ treatment gets FDA approval

In what is believed to be a first for a New Zealand company, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast-track status for a product used to treat heart failure in people with diabetes.

The product is Protemix Corporation's lead compound Laszarin (trientine).

Studies by the company suggest undesired copper levels are an important factor in the progression of diabetic complications, and it says it has demonstrated the Laszarin compound can be used to remove surplus copper.

The FDA's fast-track process is reserved for treatments of serious conditions.

Protemix co-founder Professor Garth Cooper said: 'This is an important first for New Zealand science."

He said it meant market approval for the treatment could be sped up.

CEO Larry Ellingson added: 'This news from the FDA confirms that there is an important unmet clinical need for patients with diabetes suffering from heart failure and that Laszarin has a potentially important role to play."

- HERALD ONLINE STAFF