Enanta Pharma Reports Initiation of Phase 2B Trial with Regimen Containing ABT-493

Enanta Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,

a research and development-focused biotechnology company dedicated to creating small molecule drugs in the infectious disease field, today announced that AbbVie, Enanta's development partner for protease inhibitors for hepatitis C virus (HCV), has initiated a phase 2b clinical study with ABT-493, Enanta's next-generation protease inhibitor. ABT-493 is the second clinical-stage protease inhibitor candidate developed within the Enanta-AbbVie collaboration. The phase 2b study being conducted by AbbVie will evaluate the safety and efficacy of ABT-493 co-administered with ABT-530, AbbVie's next generation NS5A inhibitor, in HCV patients. AbbVie has informed Enanta that results from this trial are expected in 2015 and AbbVie plans to start phase 3 development of the combination next year. Additional details regarding this study will be available when they are posted by AbbVie at www.clinicaltrials.gov. “The goal of our collaboration's next-generation protease inhibitor program is a pan-genotypic, ribavirin-free, once-daily dosing regimen for HCV patients,” stated Jay R. Luly, Ph.D., President and CEO.