Vasogen Inc said it will pause the clinical study of Celacade, its lead medical product for the treatment of chronic heart failure and cut 85% of its employees in order to move to another field.

The company said the restructuring will cost about $2.6 million Canadian Dollars which will be invested in the second quarter. The company expects to have about two years of cash resources.

The Canada-based firm believes that these arrangements will allow it to focus its resources on its neuro-inflammatory compounds, which are in preclinical and early development.

The Company's lead product, Celacade, is designed to activate the immune response to apoptosis, a physiological process that regulates inflammation.

Vasogen's Celacade was approved in Europe while in the United States its in late stage trial and the Food and Drugs Administration requested more clinical studies for the product.

The company reported that it will continue to work with the FDA to finalize the design of the study and evaluate funding alternatives for the U.S. clinical investigation.

Despite of its regulatory approval in Europe, its marketing European partner Grupo Ferrer reduced its revenue forecasts for Celacade and Vasogen decided to discontinue operational and financial support for European commercialization.

Shares of Vasogen Inc. closed down 0.20 percent to 0.56 cents in Nasdaq today.

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