Receptos bowel disorder drug meets mid-stage trial goal

(Reuters) - Receptos Inc said its experimental ulcerative colitis drug met the main goal in a mid-stage trial, sending its shares up 30 percent. Receptos' study tested the safety and efficacy in two doses of its lead drug, RPC1063, against a placebo in 199 patients with ulcerative colitis. During the study, 16.4 percent patients treated in the 1 mg dose group met the main goal of clinical remission at the eighth week, compared with 6.2 percent in the placebo group. The company plans to begin a late-stage study of the drug in 2015. Results suggest the potential of RPC1063 to be used in the treatment of Crohn's disease, a related inflammatory bowel disorder. Receptos plans to begin a mid-stage study for it in 2015. Ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are common forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), painful and debilitating inflammatory conditions which usually involve severe diarrhea, pain, fatigue and weight loss. In the United States, it is currently estimated that about 1 to 1.3 million people suffer from IBD, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Drugs developed by Takeda Pharmaceuticals Co Ltd and Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd for the treatment of ulcerative colitis have received approval this year.4 Receptos said in June RPC1063 also met the main goal in a mid-stage trial for multiple sclerosis. The company's shares were at $86.85 in extended trading after closing at $67.74 on Monday on the Nasdaq. (Reporting by Samantha Kareen Nair and Ankur Banerjee in Bangalore; Editing by Maju Samuel)