NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals surged Tuesday after the company reported successful trial results for a diabetes drug intended for patients with kidney impairment.
Lexicon said the drug worked better than a placebo in reducing patients' blood sugar levels after meals. Patients in the trial had type 2 diabetes and moderate to severe kidney impairment.
Shares of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals Inc. climbed 75 cents, or 31.5 percent, to $3.13 in morning trading, and earlier hit $3.18, its highest point since July 2012.
The Woodlands, Texas, company says renal impairment affects about 30 percent of people with type 2 diabetes. There were a total of 30 patients in the study. They had poorly controlled diabetes as well as kidney impairment. They received an oral dose of 400 milligrams of LX4211 or a placebo once per day before breakfast.
Lexicon has no approved products. Its most advanced drug is telotristat, a treatment for a condition called carcinoid syndrome, which causes severe diarrhea and can lead to malnutrition, heart disease, and death. LX4211 is its next most advanced product.
In 2012, the company said LX4211 worked better than a placebo at reducing blood sugar levels for patients with diabetes and healthy kidneys.
