Scios Nova Inc.'s Auriculin atrial natriuretic peptide reducedthe need for dialysis in patients suffering from acute renalfailure in a Phase II study of 54 patients.

Results of the trial, conducted at the University of ColoradoHealth Sciences Center, were presented Tuesday at the annualmeeting of the American Society of Nephrology in Boston.

Twenty-three percent of patients treated with Auriculin plusstandard care required dialysis compared with 54 percent ofthose who received standard care alone (different at p<0.05).Standard care consisted of furosemide, mannitol or no diuretic.

Researchers Noor Rahman and John Conger also reported thatpatients receiving Auriculin had a mortality rate of 17 percentcompared with a 37 percent mortality rate in the standard caregroup. They said the difference was not significant.

The drug is currently in a 500-patient Phase III trial fortreatment of acute renal failure. -- Brenda Sandburg

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