Neuroscience pharmaceutical company Amarin made a net loss of $6.4 million (€5 million) in the first quarter ended March 31st.

For the same period in 2005 the London-based firm saw a net loss of $3.7 million.

The company attributed the increased net loss to increased investment in two ongoing phase III trials with the drug Miraxion, designed to fight Huntington's disease.

Amarin reported a $1.9 million increase in research and development from the previous period.

In the first quarter costs were $2.9 million and were mainly due to the company's Miraxion drug trials, which started in the middle of 2005.

For the first quarter, the operating loss was $6.8 million compared to an operating loss of $3.5 million during the previous year's period.

Rick Stewart, chief executive of Amarin said in a statement that the company would concentrate on "successfully completing" its phase III trials while building its "development pipeline in depression, Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases".

Amarin reported cash of $33.3 million compared to $6 million in the first quarter of 2005. Nearly $44.2 million was raised in 2005 and an additional $6.3 million during the first quarter of this year.

The company's report also stated that it has "no debt and forecasts having sufficient cash to fund operations into the fourth quarter of 2007".