ImmunoForge has announced FDA approval for its Investigational New Drug (IND) application to begin a Phase 2 clinical trial of Pemziviptadil (PF1804) for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) cardiomyopathy. This approval marks a significant step forward in addressing the unmet medical need for effective therapies targeting cardiac dysfunction in DMD patients.
Pemziviptadil is a first-in-class drug developed using ImmunoForge's Elastin-Like Polypeptide (ELP) platform, designed for once-weekly administration. The drug is a vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) analog that selectively targets the vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor 2 (VPAC2). By selectively acting on VPAC2, Pemziviptadil aims to enhance both cardiac contraction and relaxation, leading to improved cardiac function.
Addressing the Shortcomings of VIP
Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) has faced challenges as a therapeutic agent due to its extremely short half-life of less than one minute. ImmunoForge's ELP platform extends VIP's half-life to 60 hours. This modification allows for selective action on VPAC2, avoiding gastrointestinal side effects associated with vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor 1 (VPAC1) activation, such as diarrhea.
Clinical and Preclinical Evidence
Preclinical studies in MDX mouse models have demonstrated the drug's ability to suppress cardiac dysfunction. With the Phase 2 IND approval, ImmunoForge plans to conduct clinical trials in both the United States and Korea.
The Need for DMD Cardiomyopathy Treatments
While respiratory failure was historically the leading cause of mortality in DMD patients, advancements in respiratory care have shifted the primary cause of death to cardiomyopathy. Cardiac dystrophin deficiency impairs calcium channel function, leading to increased intracellular calcium, protein degradation, muscle fiber necrosis, and ultimately, cardiomyopathy, which commonly develops in DMD patients by their 30s. With an estimated 500,000 DMD patients worldwide and over 80% succumbing to cardiomyopathy, the potential market for effective treatments is substantial.
Existing treatments, such as beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers, offer limited benefits by reducing heart rate and myocardial contractility but do not provide long-term myocardial improvement.
KF1601 for Chronic Myeloid Leukemia
In addition to Pemziviptadil, ImmunoForge announced that the Korea Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved the IND for KF1601, a treatment for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML), to enter Phase 1 clinical trials.
KF1601 is a novel synthetic oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that targets BCR::ABL1. It has demonstrated effective inhibition of the T315I mutation and exhibits a favorable safety profile. ImmunoForge anticipates that KF1601 could become a more universally applicable treatment for CML, overcoming resistance issues associated with current therapies.
CML, a blood cancer characterized by excessive myeloid cell proliferation and inhibited apoptosis due to BCR::ABL1 tyrosine kinase expression, accounts for approximately 30% of adult leukemia cases, with an incidence rate of 0.4 to 1.75 cases per 100,000 people annually. KF1601 also inhibits FLT3, which may provide a differentiating advantage in treating CML patients in the blast phase.
