Eisai and Purdue Pharma Announce Oral Presentation of Latest Clinical and Non-Clinical Data on Lemborexant at 43rd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Sleep Research

TOKYO and STAMFORD, Conn., July 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Eisai Co., Ltd. (CEO: Haruo Naito, "Eisai") and Purdue Pharma L.P. (President and CEO: Craig Landau, MD "Purdue Pharma") today announced that they will present data on their investigational sleep-wake regulation agent lemborexant (development code: E2006), in an oral presentation at the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Sleep Research (JSSR), July 11-13, Sapporo, Japan. The presentation will focus on the latest lemborexant data from both clinical and non-clinical studies relating to insomnia, a sleep-wake disorder.

Eisai will present results of SUNRISE 1, a placebo-controlled, double-blind active comparator Phase 3 pivotal study of the safety and efficacy of lemborexant versus placebo and versus an active comparator (zolpidem tartrate extended release, "zolpidem ER") in approximately 1,000 patients 55 years and older with insomnia. Topline results of SUNRISE 1 were announced earlier this year.

"With a robust polysomnography data set, SUNRISE 1 is the first-ever Phase 3 study with a direct head-to-head comparison versus zolpidem ER," said Lynn Kramer, MD, Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Medical Officer, Neurology Business Group, Eisai. "Our aspiration for lemborexant is to bring patients with sleep disorders a treatment option for sleep-wake regulation that improves their ability to fall asleep and stay asleep, without impairing them the next morning."

SUNRISE 1 evaluated change from baseline for both sleep onset (primary objective) defined by latency to persistent sleep (LPS) and sleep maintenance variables (key secondary objectives), including the time spent awake in the second half of the night. The study used objective polysomnography (PSG) to determine if lemborexant 5 mg and 10 mg had a shorter time to sleep onset and prolonged sleep maintenance compared to the recommended dose of zolpidem ER. It also assessed the ability to maintain postural stability - a predictor of risk for falls - and cognition the next morning. In this study, lemborexant had rates of discontinuation due to adverse events (AEs) comparable to placebo, and the most common AEs in the lemborexant arms were headache and somnolence.

These data build on growing clinical evidence for lemborexant, including two, key Phase 1 studies (Study 108 and Study 106) which were recently presented at the 32nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (SLEEP 2018) meeting.

"The ability to fall asleep quickly and sleep throughout the night and to awake without meaningful residual effects is important for overall health and well-being, and we are pleased to be part of the development of a new potential treatment that makes a difference for people with insomnia," said Marcelo Bigal, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer, Purdue Pharma. "In collaboration with our partners at Eisai, we're looking forward to announcing additional near-term milestones for lemborexant."

Non-clinical research data from the course of discovery of lemborexant, including medicinal chemistry and pharmacological evaluation, will also be presented at the meeting.

This release discusses investigational uses of agents in development and is not intended to convey conclusions about efficacy or safety. There is no guarantee that such investigational agent will successfully complete clinical development or gain health authority approval.


    Product, Presentation No. Presentation Title, Location and Scheduled Presentation Date
    ------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------

    Lemborexant               Development of Lemborexant: A Novel Sleep/Wake Regulator for the
                              Potential Treatment of Insomnia
    Presentation No.: S11-4


                              Oral Presentation: Symposium 11, July 12 (Thursday) 8:30 - 10:30am / Venue B
                              (Special Venue)
    ---                       --------------

Lemborexant acts on the orexin neurotransmitter system and is believed to regulate sleep and wake by dampening wakefulness without impeding the ability to awaken to external stimuli. Through research and development on lemborexant, Eisai and Purdue Pharma are striving to bring a new option for sleep-wake disorders to patients and their families.

Discovered by Eisai, lemborexant is being jointly developed by Eisai and Purdue Pharma. Information about ongoing clinical studies is available at clinicaltrials.gov.

<Notes to editors>

    1. About LemborexantLemborexant, an investigational dual orexin receptor
       antagonist, is Eisai's in-house discovered and developed small molecule
       compound which inhibits orexin neurotransmission by binding competitively
       to two subtypes of orexin receptors (orexin receptor 1 and 2). In
       individuals with sleep-wake disorders, it is possible that the orexin
       system which regulates sleep and wakefulness is not functioning normally.
       During normal periods of sleep, orexin system activity is suppressed,
       suggesting it is possible to purposefully counteract inappropriate
       wakefulness and facilitate the initiation and maintenance of sleep by
       interfering with orexin neurotransmission. Therefore, Eisai and Purdue
       Pharma have been developing lemborexant as a potential treatment for
       multiple sleep disorders.                                                
       A Phase 2 clinical study of lemborexant in patients with irregular
       sleep-wake rhythm disorder (ISWRD) and mild to moderate Alzheimer's
       dementia is underway. Lemborexant is the only sleep-wake agent being
       studied for ISWRD.


    2. About SUNRISE 1 (Study 304) SUNRISE 1 is a multicenter, randomized,
       double-blind, placebo-controlled, active comparator, parallel-group study
       of the efficacy and safety of lemborexant in approximately 1,000 patients
       55 years and older (45 percent of all patients were aged 65 years and
       older) with insomnia disorder conducted in North America and Europe. In
       this study, patients were administered placebo or one of three treatment
       regimens (lemborexant 5 mg, lemborexant 10 mg, zolpidem ER 6.25 mg), and
       the primary endpoint was change from baseline in latency to persistent
       sleep of both lemborexant doses compared to placebo. Key secondary
       endpoints included change from baseline in sleep efficiency for both
       lemborexant doses compared to placebo, wake after sleep onset (WASO) for
       both lemborexant doses compared to placebo, and WASO in the second half
       of the night (WASO2H) for both lemborexant doses compared to zolpidem ER,
       after one month of treatment, measured objectively by polysomnography.








    3. About Sleep DisordersPopulation studies show that sleep disorders affect
       many more people worldwide than previously thought. Insomnia disorder is
       characterized by difficulty falling sleep, staying asleep or both,
       despite an adequate opportunity to sleep, that can lead to daytime
       consequences such as fatigue, difficulty concentrating and irritability.
       Insomnia disorder is the most common sleep disorder, with persistent
       insomnia symptoms experienced by approximately 10 percent of the adult
       population.                                                              
       Sleeping well is essential for good health, including brain health. Poor
       sleep is associated with a wide range of health consequences, including
       an increased risk of hypertension, accidental injury, diabetes, obesity,
       depression, heart attack, stroke and dementia, as well as adverse effects
       on mood and behavior.                                                    
       Experimental studies in animals and humans provide evidence of
       associations between sleep and disease risk factors, diseases and
       mortality. Studies suggest an optimal sleep duration between seven and
       eight hours. Women are 1.4 times more likely than men to suffer from
       insomnia.Older adults also have higher prevalence of insomnia; aging is
       often accompanied by changes in sleep patterns, including disrupted
       sleep, frequent waking and early waking, that can lead to less sleep
       time.






    4. About Eisai Inc. At Eisai Inc., human health care (hhc) is our goal. We
       give our first thoughts to patients and their families, and helping to
       increase the benefits health care provides. As the U.S. pharmaceutical
       subsidiary of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd., we have a passionate
       commitment to patient care that is the driving force behind our efforts
       to discover and develop innovative therapies to help address unmet
       medical needs.                                                           
       Eisai is a fully integrated pharmaceutical business that operates in two
       global business groups: oncology and neurology (dementia-related diseases
       and neurodegenerative diseases). Each group functions as an end-to-end
       global business with discovery, development, and marketing capabilities. 
       Our U.S. headquarters, commercial and clinical development organizations
       are located in New Jersey; our discovery labs are in Massachusetts and
       Pennsylvania; and our global demand chain organization resides in
       Maryland and North Carolina. To learn more about Eisai Inc., please visit
       us at www.eisai.com/US.

    5. About Purdue Pharma L.P.Purdue Pharma L.P. develops and provides
       prescription medicines that meet the evolving needs of healthcare
       professionals, patients, and caregivers. We were founded by physicians
       and we are currently led by a physician. Beyond our efforts to provide
       quality medications, Purdue is committed to supporting national, regional
       and local collaborations to drive innovations in patient care. Privately
       held, Purdue is pursuing a pipeline of new medications and technologies
       through internal research & development and strategic industry
       partnerships. For more information, please visit www.purduepharma.com.

Contacts:


    Eisai Inc.                 Purdue Pharma L.P.

    Michele Randazzo           Danielle Lewis

    201-746-2979               203-588-7653

    Michele_randazzo@eisai.com danielle.lewis@pharma.com

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