Bristol-Myers Squibb Company(BMS) announced that results from clinical and pre-clinical studies involving two of its immunology pipeline compounds, BMS-945429 (ALD518) and BMS-582949, will be shared during five presentations at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Annual Scientific Meeting being held in Atlanta from November 6 to 11. The five presentations related to these early-stage compounds are in addition to 12 Orencia (abatacept) abstracts covering the intravenous (I.V.) and subcutaneous formulations, which will also be presented at ACR. The presentation of these data highlights the company’s continued commitment to exploring new treatment options addressing unmet medical need for patients living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), via different mechanisms and I.V., subcutaneous and oral routes of administration.

BMS-945429 (ALD518) is a monoclonal antibody directed against interleukin-6, a cytokine protein known to play a key role in the inflammatory cascade in RA. Bristol-Myers Squibb is developing this compound under a licensing agreement with Alder Biopharmaceuticals. BMS-582949 is an oral dual-action p38 kinase inhibitor, which inhibits the activation and functional activity of a protein involved in regulating inflammatory processes important in RA. Bristol-Myers Squibb plans to initiate new clinical trials for these phase II compounds next year.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic, chronic, autoimmune disease characterized by inflammation in the lining of joints (or synovium), causing joint damage with chronic pain, stiffness, swelling and fatigue. RA causes limited range of motion and decreased function as a result of affected joints losing their shape and alignment.

RA affects about 1% of the world's population, including more than one million people in the United States. The condition is more common in women than in men, who account for 75 per cent of patients diagnosed with RA.

Orencia is a prescription medicine that is used to treat adults with moderate to severe RA including those who have not been helped enough by other medicines for RA. Orencia may prevent further damage to bones and joints, and may help the individual’s ability to perform daily activities. In adults, Orencia may be used alone or with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) other than tumour necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists.

Orencia also reduces signs and symptoms in children and adolescents six years of age and older with moderate to severe polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). In children and adolescents, Orencia may be used alone or with methotrexate (MTX).

Orencia should not be used with TNF antagonists and is not recommended for use with other biologic RA therapy, such as anakinra.

Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases.