Recent clinical trial results presented at major medical conferences and in publications like The Lancet highlight promising advances in the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and various cancers.
IPF Therapies Show Promise
Vicore Pharma and Endeavor BioMedicines reported positive news regarding their respective IPF therapies. Vicore's buloxibutid, an angiotensin II type 2 receptor agonist (ATRAG), and Endeavor's ENV-101, a Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway inhibitor, are both in development for IPF, offering potential new treatment avenues for this progressive and often fatal lung disease.
Arecor's AT278 Shows Promise in Type 2 Diabetes
Arecor Therapeutics announced positive Phase 1 clinical trial results for its ultra-concentrated, ultra-rapid acting insulin candidate AT278. The trial, involving overweight and obese individuals with Type 2 diabetes, demonstrated a significantly accelerated pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) profile compared to NovoRapid and Humulin R U-500. AT278 met all primary and secondary endpoints, suggesting its potential to deliver highly concentrated, low-volume injections for more effective mealtime glucose control, addressing an unmet need in patients requiring high daily insulin doses.
AstraZeneca's Tezepelumab for COPD Exacerbations
AstraZeneca presented results from its Phase 2a COURSE trial at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference, evaluating tezepelumab's impact on COPD exacerbations. The study, involving patients with moderate to very severe COPD across a broad range of blood eosinophil counts, showed a 17% numerical reduction in the annual rate of moderate or severe COPD exacerbations compared to placebo at week 52. While this reduction was not statistically significant, the findings offer insight into tezepelumab's potential role in managing COPD exacerbations, irrespective of emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or smoking status.
Volta Medical's AI-Guided Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation
Volta Medical presented positive results from the TAILORED-AF trial, a transatlantic, multi-center, randomized, controlled superiority trial comparing artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted ablation procedure with conventional treatment for persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. The trial demonstrated superiority in freedom from AF with or without anti-arrhythmic drugs at 12 months from a tailored cardiac ablation guided by AI when compared to pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) alone.
Johnson & Johnson's Tremfya Shows Efficacy in Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease
Johnson & Johnson announced Phase 3 data for Tremfya (guselkumab) in ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's Disease (CD). The QUASAR maintenance study in UC showed a 73% clinical remission rate, meeting the primary endpoint and all nine major secondary endpoints, including endoscopic normalization. Data from the GALAXI 2 and 3 studies in CD demonstrated sustained efficacy through Week 48 and superior efficacy versus Stelara (ustekinumab) on multiple endoscopic endpoints.
UCB's Bimekizumab for Hidradenitis Suppurativa
UCB announced the publication in The Lancet of Phase 3 trial results for bimekizumab in moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa (HS). The BE HEARD I and BE HEARD II studies evaluated the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab, an IL-17A and IL-17F inhibitor, in treating adults with HS. The studies demonstrated sustained improvements in clinical and patient-reported outcomes, with Alexa B Kimball noting the significant milestone for the HS community and the consistent improvements seen with bimekizumab.
Pneumagen's Neumifil for Influenza
Pneumagen presented positive Phase 2 data on Neumifil, its broad-spectrum antiviral intranasal drug for viral respiratory tract infections (RTIs), at the ATS conference. The Controlled Human Infection Model (CHIM) study showed statistically significant reductions in influenza symptomatic infection rate, symptom severity, and viral load following Neumifil administration. Further trials are expected to include Neumifil’s application in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and asthma.
Nimbus Therapeutics' NDI-101150 for Advanced Solid Tumors
Nimbus Therapeutics announced new Phase 1/2 data on NDI-101150, a novel, small molecule hematopoietic progenitor kinase 1 (HPK1) inhibitor for advanced solid tumors. The data showed a clinical benefit in 5 out of 30 response-evaluable patients, including a complete response in one patient with renal cell carcinoma (RCC), a partial response in another RCC patient, and durable stable disease in three patients with RCC, pancreatic cancer, and endometrial cancer. NDI-101150 is designed to produce a robust anti-tumor response by regulating T-cells, B-cells, and dendritic cells.
