Eli Lilly, Boehringer Ingelheim announce linagliptin trial results

INDIANAPOLIS — A drug currently under clinical development for Type 2 diabetes produced "meaningful" reductions in blood sugar, according to results of a late-stage clinical study.

Eli Lilly & Co. and Boehringer Ingelheim announced results of a 24-week, open-label arm of a phase-3 study of the investigational drug linagliptin combined with the generic drug metformin, presenting results at the International Diabetes Federation World Diabetes Conference in Dubai.

After 24 weeks, the companies said, patients with poorly controlled blood sugar showed HbA1C reductions of 3.7%. Most patients tolerated the drug well, with 9% experiencing adverse side effects and 1.5% reporting abnormally low blood sugar, also known as hypoglycemia.

"Many patients with high HbA1C levels require more than metformin alone to reach their blood glucose targets," Boehringer Ingelheim corporate SVP medicine Klaus Dugi said. "Linagliptin can support patients with Type 2 diabetes to effectively manage their condition in order [to] reach their blood-glucose targets."

In another study, patients who could not take metformin were given linagliptin or the generic drug glimepiride in a 34-week extension phase of a one-year trial. HbA1C levels in linagliptin patients remained stable between week 18 and week 52. Glimepiride showed similar levels of efficacy, but linagliptin produced fewer adverse side effects, the companies said.

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