Date: 2015-06-16
Type of information: Halting of the trial
phase: preclinical
Announcement: presentation of results at The 15th World Congress on Pain in Buenos Aires
Company: Medivir (Sweden)
Product: cathepsin S inhibitors including MIV-247
Action
mechanism: MIV-247 is a potent and highly selective inhibitor of cathepsin S. Cathepsin S is a protease which has been shown to be important for the maintenance of the neuropathic pain state, through its action in releasing membrane-bound fractalkine (a pro-inflammatory peptide) from the surface of neurons. Fractalkine is a potent chemokine which stimulates the recruitment of inflammatory cells to the sites of neuronal damage and activates microglia. These cells are implicated as key drivers in the pathogenesis of chronic neuropathic pain. The inhibition of cathepsin S results in reduced pain related behavior in preclinical models of neuropathic pain.
Disease: neuropathic pain
Therapeutic area: CNS diseases
Country:
Trial details:
Latest
news: * On June 16, 2015, Medivir announced a reorganization within its Discovery Research department, increasing its focus within the core areas of oncology and infectious diseases. The company has decided to exit the neuropathic pain area, following adverse findings in non-clinical safety studies of MIV-247, its cathepsin S inhibitor being developed for neuropathic pain. Development of this program has been terminated and future drug discovery efforts will be focused in the core areas of oncology and infectious diseases. On October 9, 2014, Medivir announced that data from its cathepsin S inhibitor drug development program for neuropathic pain will be presented at the 15th World Congress on Pain in Buenos Aires. The poster presentations will include the preclinical profile of MIV-247, selected as a clinical candidate for further development, and preclinical results from combination treatments with a cathepsin S inhibitor and gabapentin, a commonly used drug for neuropathic pain.
The data to be presented support the development of a potent oral cathepsin S inhibitor such as MIV-247 as a new treatment for neuropathic pain:
• Use in first line monotherapy – cathepsin S inihibition provided fast and sustained effects in neuropathic pain models
• Use as an add-on to current treatments - markedly enhanced efficacy was seen when a cathepsin S inhibitor was given in combination with gabapentin compared to either drug alone
• Low side effect potential - No CNS side effects were seen at the highest efficacious dose.
