Poolbeg Pharma plc (LON:POLB), a leading infectious disease focused biopharmaceutical company, has announced positive initial data analysis for POLB 001, a viral strain agnostic, small molecule immunomodulator being developed to address the significant unmet medical need for severe influenza.
Key Highlights
· POLB 001 demonstrated a marked reduction in both systemic and localised inflammatory response compared to volunteers who received placebo
· A clear dose-response relationship was demonstrated
· Well tolerated across all doses and no serious adverse events or volunteer withdrawals were reported
· Full data read-out expected in Q2 2023 following a final quality check of the unblinded data
As announced in December, full data read-out is expected in Q2 2023. However, upon initial review, the data indicates that administration of POLB 001 resulted in a marked reduction in both systemic and localised inflammatory response in subjects challenged with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (“LPS”) compared to those who received placebo. A clear dose-response relationship was also apparent. This LPS challenge trial was designed to evaluate the effect of POLB 001 on inflammatory responses in 36 healthy volunteers between 18 and 55 years of age following both an intradermal and an intravenous LPS challenge. LPS acts as a surrogate for the hyperinflammatory response associated with severe influenza and other diseases. POLB 001 was well tolerated across all doses and no serious adverse events or volunteer withdrawals were reported.
Jeremy Skillington, CEO of Poolbeg Pharma, said: “Following the completion of the LPS human challenge trial in December, we are excited to see this positive initial data of POLB 001. The clear anti-inflammatory dose response, with no serious adverse events, further demonstrates the strong potential for POLB 001 to address the significant unmet medical need in severe influenza and beyond. We look forward to presenting the full data in Q2 2023.
We are delighted to have completed our first clinical trial on schedule, delivering on our business model of rapidly generating early human clinical data. We believe that the positive initial data is a significant value inflection point and will support discussions with partners.”
About POLB 001
POLB 001 is a small molecule immunomodulator for the treatment of hypercytokinemia related diseases such as severe influenza. POLB 001 electively inhibits overwhelming inflammation in viral infections, such as influenza, while leaving the necessary immune functions intact to fight the infection. This contrasts with other immunomodulatory approaches, such as steroids, which affect both beneficial and damaging immune responses. Due to its mode of action it is strain agnostic and unaffected by seasonal variants which is a significant advantage over treatments available on the market. In addition, as a shelf stable oral drug it is an ideal stock piling candidate for both seasonal and pandemic outbreaks. Therefore, POLB 001 has the potential to be a transformational treatment for patients and to become a leading severe influenza treatment.
