Merck Sharp and Dohme to present allergy drug data at AAAAI 2013

Merck Sharp and Dohme is to present new data analyses of its investigational allergy immunotherapy tablets at a forthcoming industry conference.

The firm will be discussing the benefits of its new treatments for ragweed pollen and grass pollen at the 2013 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) annual meeting in San Antonio.

Designed to treat the underlying cause of allergic rhinitis by generating an immune response to help protect against targeted allergens, the dissolvable oral tablets have demonstrated their safety and efficacy in clinical studies.

The company has submitted its grass pollen allergy therapy for US regulatory approval, while an application for the ragweed pollen allergy drug will filed with the Food and Drug Administration later this year.

Dr Jeffrey Chodakewitz, senior vice-president for global scientific strategy at Merck Research Laboratories, said: "We are pleased to present new results for Merck's investigational AIT products to the scientific community that we believe will be valuable in thinking about immunotherapy and the treatment of allergic rhinitis."

Earlier this month, Merck Sharp and Dohme entered into a new agreement with Samsung Bioepis on the development of a number of new biosimilar therapies over the coming years.