Clinical Research

InDex Pharma prepares for Phase 2b study

Country
Sweden

InDex Pharmaceuticals Holding AB, which is developing treatments for immunological diseases, reported unchanged revenue for 2016 and a widening of its operating deficit as it prepares to take its lead product for ulcerative colitis into a proof-of-concept trial.

Meeting Report: transparency in clinical trials

Country
Belgium

The coming into force next year of new European rules governing clinical trials will simplify trial application procedures and make more study information available to the public. At a meeting of the European Forum for Good Clinical Practice on 22 February, healthcare professionals discussed how the new rules on transparency should build public confidence in the regulatory system and avoid potentially serious accidents.

Another Alzheimer’s failure

Country
United States

Merck & Co Inc is the latest company to abandon a programme for treating patients with Alzheimer’s disease because the treatment failed to show efficacy. On 14 February, the US company said it was stopping a Phase 2/3 study of verubecestat, an inhibitor of beta-secretase 1 (BACE1).

Early data for Ablynx molecule in psoriasis

Country
Belgium

Early clinical data for a therapeutic protein developed by Ablnyx NV to treat patients with psoriasis has demonstrated that the treatment is safe, with some evidence of a reduction in disease activity. The treatment targets the interleukin-17 (IL-17) pathway.

Enterome starts trial of microbiome drug

Country
France

Enterome SA has started a Phase 1 study of its lead small molecule drug directed at the gut microbiome. The candidate drug targets the FimH protein as a means of blocking inflammation in Crohn’s disease.

Remission reported for aggressive brain tumours

Country
United States

A 50-year old patient with recurrent cancer involving tumours in both the brain and spinal cord has been treated with a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy targeting an antigen that is overexpressed in a majority of glioblastomas.

Noxxon to test aptamer drug with Keytruda

Country
Germany

Noxxon Pharma AG has become the latest company to reach an agreement with Merck & Co Inc to test a portfolio drug with Keytruda (pembrolizumab), the US company’s immune checkpoint inhibitor.

Patient with mutant KRAS successfully treated

Country
United States

A patient with KRAS mutant metastatic colorectal cancer has been successfully treated with an autologous T cell receptor therapy, suggesting there may be a path forward for tackling difficult solid tumours, according to Kite Pharma Inc.