Final ID: LB-20
A proof-of-concept Phase 2a clinical trial with HBV/HDV entry inhibitor Myrcludex B
S. Urban; 2; P. Bogomolov; 4; N. Voronkova; 4; L. Allweiss; 3; M. Dandri; 3; M. Schwab; 6, 7; F. A. Lempp; 2; M.
Haag; 6; H. Wedemeyer; 5; A. Alexandrov; 1;
1. MYR GmbH, Bad Homburg, Germany.
2. University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
3. University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
4. Moscow Regional Research Clinical Institute, Moscow, Russian Federation.
5. Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
6. Dr. Margarete Fischer-Bosch Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, Stuttgart, Germany.
7. Department of Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Abstract Body: Introduction: Current therapies for chronic hepatitis B rarely induce cure. Moreover, no effective treatment for the majority of hepatitis D patients is available. Myrcludex B is a first-in-class entry inhibitor inactivating the HBV/HDV receptor NTCP, thereby addressing a replication step possibly required for curative therapy. We here present findings of the first clinical trials of Myrcludex B in chronic hepatitis B and D.
Aim: To evaluate safety and tolerability, as well as antiviral efficacy of Myrcludex B.
Methodology: Cohort A: 40 chronically HBV infected, HBeAg negative patients (all HBV DNA >2000 IU/ml median HBV DNA 4.7 log10 IU/ml; no cirrhosis) were treated for 12 weeks with once daily sc 0.5mg, 1mg, 2mg, 5mg and 10mg Myrcludex B for 12 weeks (8 patients per dose). Treatment was extended to 24 weeks in patients receiving 10mg. Cohort B: 24 patients with hepatitis delta (compensated liver disease; 12.5% cirrhosis) scheduled for 48 weeks
of pegylated interferon alpha (PEG-IFNα) therapy. 8 hepatitis delta patients are receiving pre-treatment with 2mg Myrcludex B alone for 24 weeks (B1); Myrcludex B was added to (PEG-IFNa) for the first 24 weeks to another 8 patients (B2) while 8 patients are treated with PEG-IFNa alone (B3).
Results:
Myrcludex B was very well tolerated, injection side dermatitis occurred in 3 patients (10mg group) of Myrcludex B, regressed on treatment. A psoriasis exacerbation occurred in one HDV patient (B2) leading to discontinuation.
>1log10 HBV DNA decline at week 12 was observed in 6/8 (75%) patients receiving 10mg Myrcludex B while this occurred less often in the remaining dose groups (7/40; 17%). ALT normalized in 22/40 (55%) patients, median ALT values declined from 76 U/l before therapy to 36 U/l at week 12 (p<0.001). No significant changes in HBsAg levels occurred. In hepatitis delta, 6/7 and 7/7 of patients with data available experienced >1log10 HDV RNA decline at week 24 during Myrcludex B monotherapy (B1) or combination therapy (B2) while this response was observed in 7/7 of B3 patients at week 12. HDV RNA became negative in 2 (B1) and 5 (B2) patients at week 24. ALT values declined at week 24 in 6/7 (B1), 4/7 (B2) and 3/7 (B3, week 12) patients. One patient in B1 and one in B2 had negative HDV RNA and normal ALT at week 24. One patient (B2) experienced 1log10 HBsAg decline at week 24. Myrcludex B treatment induced preS-specific antibodies and bile acid elevation at doses >1mg.
Conclusion: Myrcludex B is safe and well tolerated in HBsAg positive patients with or without HDV coinfection. HBV entry inhibition seems to be associated HBV DNA and HDV RNA declines and improvement of biochemical disease activity. 作者: StephenW 时间: 2014-10-10 04:10
AbstractBACKGROUND & AIMS: Currently approved antivirals rarely cure hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Therefore additional therapeutic strategies interfering with other viral replication steps are needed. Using synthetic lipopeptides derived from the HBV envelope protein, we previously demonstrated prevention of de novo HBV infection in vivo. We aimed at investigating the ability of the lipopeptide Myrcludex-B to block HBV spreading post-infection.
METHODS: uPA/SCID mice reconstituted with human hepatocytes were infected with HBV. Daily subcutaneous Myrcludex-B administration was initiated either 3 days, 3 weeks or 8 weeks post HBV inoculation. Viral loads were quantitated in serum and liver, and visualized by immunohistochemistry.
RESULTS: Myrcludex-B efficiently prevented viral spreading from the initially infected human hepatocytes, as demonstrated by the lack of increase in viremia, antigen levels and amount of HBcAg-positive human hepatocytes determined 6 weeks after treatment. Myrcludex-B efficiently blocked HBV dissemination also when treatment was started in the ramp-up phase of infection, in mice displaying moderate levels of circulating virions (median 3 × 10(6)HBV DNA copies/ml). Notably, after 6 weeks of treatment, not only the amount of HBcAg-positive hepatocytes, but also intrahepatic cccDNA loads, remained comparable to values found in mice sacrificed 3 weeks post-infection. In none of the experimental settings, drug administration affected human hepatocyte half-life or altered virion productivity.
CONCLUSIONS: Myrcludex-B efficiently not only prevented HBV spreading from infected human hepatocytes in vivo, but also hindered amplification of the cccDNA pool in initially infected hepatocytes. Administration of an entry inhibitor, possibly used in combination with current HBV drugs, may improve patients' treatment outcome. 作者: lgs1 时间: 2014-10-10 14:58
myrcludex动物试验
THE ENTRY INHIBITOR MYRCLUDEX-B EFFICIENTLY BLOCKS VIRAL SPREADING IN VIVO IN HUMAN LIVER CHIMERIC uPA/ SCID MICE PREVIOUSLY INFECTED WITH HEPATITIS B VIRUS
Antiviral treatments based on interferon-a or polymerase inhibitors are generally notcurative and additional therapeutic strategies interfering with other HBV replicationsteps are needed. We previously demonstrated prevention of de novo HBV infectionby pre-treating uPA/SCID mice with Myrcludex-B, a lipopeptide derived from the HBVpreS1 domain (Nat. Biotech.2008). Aim of this study was to investigate the abilityof Myrcludex-B to block HBV spreading post-infection. Experimental design: humanchimeric uPA/SCID mice were injected with HBV-infectious serum (5×10E7 HBV DNAcopies/mouse). Treatment with Myrcludex-B (2mg/Kg/day; s.c. injection) was initiatedeither 3 days (group A, n=8) or 3 weeks (group B, n=7) post infection (p.i.). After 6 weeksof treatment, mice were analyzed serologically (HBV-DNA, HBsAg), intrahepaticallyby qRT-PCR (rcDNA, cccDNA) and by immunohistochemistry (HBcAg). Results: Myrcludex-B administration initiated 3-days p.i. efficiently prevented viral spreadingfrom the few initially infected human hepatocytes (HBcAg-positive cells). Six weekspost-treatment viremia and HBsAg levels remained low (<10E5 HBV-DNA/ml and<10 IU/ml, respectively), while in untreated mice median viremia increased to 3×10E7and the majority of human hepatocytes stained HBcAg-positive. Myrcludex-B blockedefficiently HBV spreading also when treatment was started 3-weeks p.i., in micedisplaying already median 3×10E6 HBV-DNA/ml. Even in this experimental setting,viremia and HBsAg levels were not significantly increased after 6 weeks of treatment(9 weeks p.i.) and median cccDNA loads remained 50-fold lower as controls andcomparable to values found at week 3 p.i. (0.02 copies/cell). Conclusions: Applicationof Myrcludex-B post HBV-infection showed strong capacities to block viral spreadingin vivo, suggesting that HBV preferentially disseminates via secreted virions and theuse of Myrcludex-B in combination with current HBV-drugs may improve patients’outcome.