Idenix Pharmaceuticals has announced that it has begun enrolling participants into the Phase II HELIX-2 clinical trial of an all-oral, interferon-free triple-drug regimen to treat hepatitis C virus (HCV), Healio reports. The trial will study samatasvir, Idenix’s pan-genotypic HS5A inhibitor, Janssen’s recently approved NS3/4A protease inhibitor Olysio (simeprevir) and Janssen’s non-nucleoside polymerase inhibitor TMC647055, which is boosted with low-dose ritonavir.

The 12-week trial will test the drug regimen in people with genotype 1 of hep C who are either treatment naive or who have relapsed after prior treatment with interferon and ribavirin. The participants will receive once-daily doses of each drug either with or without ribavirin.

“We are pleased with the continuing progress of our clinical program for samatasvir, which will provide additional important information on the use of this promising compound as part of all-oral HCV combination regimens,” Doug Mayers, MD, Idenix’s chief medical officer, said in a release. “With the advancement of the samatasvir program as well as that of our novel nucleotide prodrug inhibitor, IDX21437, we anticipate initiating the evaluation of our own HCV combination regimen in 2014.”

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