CAMBRIDGE,Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKBA), a biopharmaceutical company focused on delivering innovative therapies to patients with kidney disease through the biology of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), today announced that data from its Phase 2b trial of AKB-6548 in non-dialysis patients with anemia related to chronic kidney disease will be featured in an oral presentation at the 2015 European Renal Association-European Dialysis and Transplant Association (ERA-EDTA) 52nd Congress, which is being held in London from May 28 - May 31, 2015.

The details of the presentation are as follows:

About AKB-6548

AKB-6548 is a once-daily, oral therapy currently in development for the treatment of anemia related to CKD. AKB-6548 is designed to stabilize HIF, a transcription factor that regulates the expression of genes involved with red blood cell (RBC) production in response to changes in oxygen levels, by inhibiting the hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase (HIF-PH) enzyme. AKB-6548 exploits the same mechanism of action used by the body to naturally adapt to lower oxygen availability associated with a moderate increase in altitude. At higher altitudes, the body responds to lower oxygen availability with increased production of HIF, which coordinates the interdependent processes of iron mobilization and erythropoietin (EPO) production to increase RBC production and, ultimately, improve oxygen delivery.

As a HIF stabilizer with best-in-class potential, AKB-6548 raises hemoglobin levels predictably and sustainably, with a dosing regimen that allows for a gradual and controlled titration. AKB-6548 has been shown to improve iron mobilization, potentially eliminating the need for intravenous iron administration and reducing the overall need for iron supplementation.

About Anemia Related to CKD

Approximately 30 million people in the United States have CKD, with an estimated 1.8 million of these patients suffering from anemia. Anemia results from the body's inability to coordinate RBC production in response to lower oxygen levels due to the progressive loss of kidney function, which occurs in patients with CKD. Left untreated, anemia significantly accelerates patients' overall deterioration of health with increased morbidity and mortality. Renal anemia is currently treated with injectable recombinant erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, or rESAs, which are associated with inconsistent hemoglobin responses and well-documented safety risks.

About Akebia Therapeutics

Akebia Therapeutics, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, focused on delivering innovative therapies to patients with kidney disease through HIF biology. Akebia's lead product candidate, AKB-6548, is a once-daily, oral therapy, which has completed a Phase 2b study for the treatment of anemia related to chronic kidney disease in non-dialysis patients and is also being tested in a Phase 2 study for the treatment of anemia in patients undergoing dialysis.

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Source: Akebia Therapeutics, Inc.

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