NEW YORK, July 08, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AzurRx BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZRX) (AzurRx or the Company), a company specializing in the development of non-systemic, recombinant therapies for gastrointestinal diseases, today announced that it will have a management R&D update call.

The R&D update will feature a presentation by Thijs Spoor, CEO; Maged Shenouda, CFO: and Dr. James Pennington, CMO.  The management team will be available to answer questions.

The Company, along with its Investor Relations firm, LifeSci Advisors, will host the R&D update call on Monday, July 8th at 4:30 p.m. ET.  Investors can join the call using the following numbers and webcast link:

About MS1819-SD

MS1819-SD, supplied as an oral non-systemic biologic capsule, is a recombinant enzyme that is derived from the Yarrowia lipolytica lipase, and unlike the PERTs-based standard of care, does not contain any animal products.

In a Phase II trial of MS1819-SD in patients with CP, MS1819-SD showed a favorable safety profile with good tolerability. Additionally, a statistically significant (p=0.002) improvement in the coefficient of fat absorption of 21.8% was observed the highest studied dose (per protocol).

The Company is also currently conducting the OPTION Study, the Company’s Phase II multi-center study to investigate the safety, tolerability and efficacy of MS1819-SD in a head-to-head comparison against the current PERTs standard of care for EPI in CF patients.  The Company recently announced the completion of patient enrollment in the OPTION Study, with top-line results expected late Summer 2019.

About Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency:

EPI is a condition characterized by deficiency of the exocrine pancreatic enzymes, resulting in the inability to digest food properly, or maldigestion. The deficiency in this enzyme can be responsible for greasy diarrhea, fecal urge and weight loss.

There are approximately 90,000 patients in the U.S. with EPI caused by chronic pancreatitis according to the National Pancreas Foundation and more than 30,000 patients with EPI caused by cystic fibrosis according to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Patients are currently treated with porcine pancreatic enzyme replacement pills.