MingMed Biotechnology's QA102 Shows Promise in Phase II Trial for Intermediate Dry AMD
核心洞察
MingMed Biotechnology reported positive Phase II results for oral QA102 in treating intermediate dry age-related macular degeneration (搜索), presented at ARVO 2026.
The 400 mg dose reduced drusen volume growth rate by 118.2% (p=0.017) and geographic atrophy area growth by 42.7% (p=0.026) compared to placebo.
QA102 represents a first-in-class oral therapy for atrophic AMD (搜索) and the first drug candidate to demonstrate efficacy signals in intermediate dry AMD.
MingMed Biotechnology Co., Ltd (搜索) announced positive results from its Phase II clinical trial of QA102, an oral therapy for patients with intermediate dry age-related macular degeneration (搜索) (AMD). The results were presented at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) 2026 annual meeting in Denver, Colorado.
Clinical Trial Results
Study QA102-CS201, a phase 2, double-masked, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, enrolled 150 subjects with intermediate atrophic AMD (搜索). Participants were randomized 1:1:1 to receive oral QA102 200 mg, 400 mg, or placebo twice daily for up to 15 months.
Following 12-month treatment, the mean change in drusen volume was reduced by 59.2% in the QA102 400 mg group relative to the placebo group. While the primary efficacy endpoint did not demonstrate a statistically significant difference between groups, secondary endpoints showed promising results.
The growth rate in drusen volume was reduced by 118.2% (p=0.017) and the growth rate in square-root transformed geographic atrophy (GA) area was reduced by 42.7% in the 400 mg group relative to placebo (p=0.026). QA102 demonstrated the potential to slow down the progression of intermediate dry AMD with an acceptable safety profile.
Addressing Unmet Medical Need
Intermediate dry AMD is a chronic, progressive retinal disease marked by large drusen and pigmentary changes, representing a significant risk for conversion to advanced AMD. As part of the most common cause of irreversible blindness in older adults, its prevalence is rising, affecting nearly 7% of individuals aged 65 and older in the US.
"Intermediate AMD represents the most prevalent stage of the disease, yet remains an area of significant unmet medical need with a lack of therapies to slow or prevent progression," said Scott Whitcup, MD, an expert in ophthalmic drug development.
First-in-Class Therapy
According to Fred Ouyang, PhD, Chief Technology Officer of MingMed Biotechnology, "QA102 represents a first-in-class oral therapy for atrophic AMD (搜索) and is the first drug candidate to demonstrate efficacy signals in intermediate dry AMD. We look forward to advancing QA102 into the next phase of clinical development."
Sunil Patel, MD, PhD, a principal investigator of the study, noted that "the phase II data for QA102 are very encouraging for millions of people affected by intermediate or advanced forms of dry age related macular degeneration."
Company Pipeline
MingMed Biotechnology is a biomedical firm focused on the discovery and development of novel therapeutics across multiple therapeutic areas. Smilebiotek Zhuhai Limited (搜索), a subsidiary of MingMed Biotech, is dedicated to developing first-in-class ophthalmology products. The company's atrophic AMD (搜索) pipeline includes two novel candidates: QA102, a new chemical entity (NCE), and QA108, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).