NEWS OF THE WEEK
MERCK ADVANCES CHOLESTEROL DRUGS CLINICAL TRIALS: Positive new data
for both Vytorin and anacetrapib
ERCK & CO. has unveiled promising results
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CF3 Anacetrapib
from clinical trials of two cholesterol-lowering drugs—one on the market, the other in development—that could be important to the company’s long-term health. In a study of more than 9,000 people with chronic kidney disease, Vytorin lowered the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, and revascularization surgeries by 16%. According to Merck, no other drug has that effect for such patients. The results come two years after the value of VytorCF3 in, a combination of ezetimibe and the generic drug simvastatin, was called into question. A large clinical trial showed it was no better than simvastatin alone at preventing the buildup of arterial plaque. Despite the good news, analysts haven’t changed their outlook for Vytorin. Pfizer’s Lipitor loses patent
LOW-OCTANE CLIMATE TALKS NEGOTIATIONS: Meeting in Mexico expected to produce only modest agreements WO WEEKS OF United Nations climate-change
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Figueres (left) and Espinosa discuss climate change.
talks are set to begin on Nov. 29 in Cancún, Mexico, with negotiators seeking modest agreements that will not place specific restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions. Expectations for the Cancún meeting are restrained in contrast to the extensive buildup for the 2009 climate talks in Copenhagen that failed to produce a longexpected new global climate treaty. This past summer, negotiators gave up trying to complete a pact this year that specifies how much countries should control their greenhouse gas emissions and by when (C&EN, Aug. 23, page 26). What’s likely to come out of the Cancún talks, which run through Dec. 10, is a package of agreements on four issues. One WWW.CEN-ONLINE.ORG
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protection next year, and every cholesterol-lowering drug is expected to be hit by the influx of competition from generics. Deutsche Bank forecasts that sales for the Vytorin franchise will fall from $4.1 billion this year to $3.4 billion by 2014. At the same time, Lipitor’s patent expiry puts the spotlight on new cholesterol drugs. Merck also came out with highly anticipated results from a Phase III trial of anacetrapib, a member of a family of compounds that raise the levels of “good” cholesterol by blocking cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP). In a trial of 1,623 people at high risk for heart disease, adding anacetrapib to their statin therapy resulted in a 138% increase in good cholesterol and a 40% decrease in “bad” cholesterol. Anacetrapib has been closely watched after the colossal failure of torcetrapib, Pfizer’s CETP inhibitor. In 2006, Pfizer ended development of the compound because of a higher mortality rate among patients taking torcetrapib and Lipitor than those taking Lipitor alone. The deaths were later linked to biomarkers that Merck claims anacetrapib doesn’t affect. Although the drug is still several years from the market, analysts are excited about the study results. “This clearly lays the groundwork for anacetrapib, and possibly other CETP inhibitors, to potentially be very important medicines in the mega-category of lipid modifiers,” Bernstein Research analyst Tim Anderson wrote in a note to investors.—LISA JARVIS
is a program to help developing countries install lowcarbon-emitting energy technologies. Another would assist poor, vulnerable nations in adapting to the predicted impacts of climate change, such as sea-level rise. A third is a deal to reduce deforestation and protect woodlands in the developing world. Finally, governments are expected to create a fund to help developing countries address climate change in the long term. The weak global economy makes countries hesitant to commit to restrictions on their greenhouse gas emissions, says Patricia Espinosa, Mexico’s secretary of foreign affairs, who is presiding over the Cancún meeting. “But bleaker times lie ahead if we keep delaying the necessary decisions” to combat climate change, she says. Countries are not expected to come to an agreement on several contentious issues left unresolved since the Copenhagen talks, including the measurement, reporting, and verification of voluntary emissions restrictions by developing countries such as China. The Cancún talks are also seen as a test of whether UN-sponsored negotiations on climate change remain viable. Some observers suggest that discussions might be more fruitful if they are limited to countries responsible for most of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. “A Cancún deal isn’t going to solve the whole problem” of climate change, says Christiana Figueres, the UN’s top global-warming official. “But it can set a new pace for negotiations, where governments lock in better agreements every year.”—CHERYL HOGUE
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