Our Products

Asahi Kasei Pharma America (AKP America), formerly Artisan Pharma, is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to bringing best-in-class critical care therapeutics to patients throughout the world. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asahi Kasei Pharma, Corp., following its November 2011 acquisition.

ART 123 (recombinant human thrombomodulin alpha, marketed as Recomodulin® in Japan), our lead product candidate, represents a promising new treatment for severe sepsis with coagulopathy. This drug has successfully completed a Phase 2b clinical trial in disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and Phase 3 trials will be underway shortly. This product might also be beneficial for a number of other indications.

Coagulopathy entails the widespread formation of microthrombi, ultimately involving organ dysfunction and death. This severe condition frequently occurs in sepsis patients, who number more than 1.8 million each year between the U.S. and Europe. About 30% of sepsis patients develop disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), which doubles their risk of death.

ART 123 is particularly well-suited to treat coagulopathy associated with severe sepsis because this condition is a disorder of both systemic inflammatory and coagulation pathways. ART 123 targets both of these pathways in a highly synergistic way.

The Japanese Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Agency approved ART 123 on January 25, 2008 for the treatment of DIC. AKP America has recruited an ART 123 Program Advisory Board to assist us in developing the product in a manner most beneficial to patients. These investigators, who represent some of the most renowned researchers in sepsis, critical care and hematology, have been invaluable in the strategic design and implementation of our development program.