Preliminary Efficacy and Tolerability of NCX-1000 After Repeated Oral Doses in Patients With Elevated Portal Pressure

Chronic liver diseases are often characterized by portal hypertension, a major complication involving haemodynamic changes due to increased intrahepatic vascular resistance. It has become well established that nitric oxide (NO) plays a crucial role in the haemodynamic abnormalities that develop in chronic portal hypertension. NCX-1000 is a NO-releasing derivative of ursodeoxycholic acid that would compensate for the defective liver NO production in cirrhosis. This study intends to demonstrate the desired therapeutic activity (reduction in portal pressure) in a small number of target patients, to assess the safety and tolerability after repeated oral administrations of NCX-1000, and to get preliminary pharmacokinetic data in this population.