Mannkind Corporation and Pfizer, Inc. announce the transition of some Exubera patients to Mannkind's Technosphere(R) Insulin.

In October 2007, Pfizer announced that it would stop marketing Exubera (insulin human (rDNA origin)) Inhalation Powder because it did not meet customers' needs or Pfizer's financial expectations. After the positive data released concerning Mannkind's phase III clinical study of Technosphere, Pfizer announced that it would transition Exubera patients who could tolerate other forms of insulin therapies to other formulations to MannKind's inhaled insulin product, Technosphere(R) Insulin.

The primary objective of Mannkind's 565 person study from the US, Europe and South America was to compare the efficacy (shown by AIC level change) of the treatment received by the T1 Group as opposed to that of the comparator group. Roughly half received Technosphere(R) Insulin while the rest received insulin aspart. Technosphere(R) was generally very well tolerated by all in the group.

AIC levels decreased in both groups during the year-long study and differences were not statistically significant.  However, patients in the T1 group showed statistically significant lower mean blood glucose levels 6 hours after meals than the other group. Additionally, those in the T1 group lost an average of 2 kgs whereas there was an average weight gain of 1.4 kgs in the comparator group. A full analysis of the meal challenge data has not yet been completed. Other differences were found between the groups and data is to be further analyzed.

The Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology describes how MannKind's Technosphere(R) Insulin achieves peak insulin levels within 12-14 minutes of administration, effectively mimicking the release of meal-time insulin observed in healthy individuals, but which is absent from patients with diabetes.

Technosphere(R) Insulin is an ordered lattus array of recombinant human insulin and Technosphere(R), a new drug delivery system for pulmonary administration.

Sources: Pfizer, Inc.; Mannkind Corporation