Article
作者: Douglas, Mark ; Ben-Ali, Souad ; Dahari, Harel ; Francois, Sandrine ; Jachs, Mathias ; Yurdaydin, Cihan ; Vitale, Alessandro ; Gerber, Athenaïs ; Metivier, Sophie ; Baril, Marie-Éve ; Schramko, Jocelyn ; Brancaccio, Giuseppina ; Brichler, Ségolène ; Levrero, Massimo ; Testoni, Barbara ; Svicher, Valentina ; Bourliere, Marc ; Loustaud-Ratti, Véronique ; Lecomte, Laurence ; Chevaliez, Stéphane ; Etzion, Ohad ; Kaysin, Furkan ; Mackiewicz, Vincent ; Colombain, Lea ; Bedoya, Jose Ursic ; Metin, R Olga ; Morvan, Christopher ; Zoulim, Fabien ; Gaeta, Giovanni Battista ; Reiberger, Thomas ; de Freitas, Cecilia ; Yardeni, David ; Mathurin, Philippe ; Schwarz, Michael ; Bondezi, Kindness ; Meszaros, Magdalena ; Stern, Christiane ; Paradis, Valerie ; Vaillant, Andrew ; Bazinet, Michel ; Poulin, Sébastien ; Bardou-Jacquet, Edouard ; Alric, Laurent ; Plissonnier, Marie-Laure ; Neumann-Haefelin, Christoph ; Gordien, Emmanuel
BACKGROUND & AIMS:REP 2139-Mg (REP), a nucleic acid polymer, blocks HBV subviral particle assembly and HDV replication. We hereby report results of REP treatment in HDV patients in a compassionate access program (NCT05683548).
METHODS:Thirty-three HDV patients with advanced chronic liver disease (ACLD) received REP 250mg weekly subcutaneously (SC) plus nucleotide analog for a scheduled 48-weeks duration. Pegylated interferon-α (pegIFN) 45-180ug weekly was added in 20 patients without contraindications. Safety and efficacy were monitored regularly, and intra-hepatic markers performed in one liver explant.
RESULTS:Among the 33 patients (age 21-69 years, 21 males), 85% (28/33) had previous treatment failure and 6 had decompensated cirrhosis (ascites n=5). Suboptimal response to REP was rescued with dose modifications [250mg intravenously (IV), or 500mg SC or IV] and/or therapy extension in 21 patients. At the end of therapy (EoT), HDV-RNA declined by >2log10 in 70% (23/33) and was undetectable in 58% (19/33). HBsAg loss occurred in 27% (9/33). In the 28 patients with available follow-up, HDV-RNA and HBsAg remained undetectable in 46% (13/28) and 18% (5/28) respectively. ALT normalized in 50% (14/28). Response was similar with or without pegIFN. Ascites improved in 2/5 patients. Three patients underwent liver transplantation while receiving REP, with no complications. One liver explant analysis showed undetectable HDV-RNA and HDAg and very low levels of intra-hepatic cccDNA activity and HBsAg. No REP-related serious adverse events were reported.
CONCLUSIONS:REP treatment was safe and effective in HDV patients with ACLD. REP may even induce HDV sustained virological response and HBV functional cure independent of combination with pegIFN. Clinical benefits may also be observed in patients with decompensated cirrhosis.
IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS:No antiviral treatment is approved for chronic hepatitis D (CHD) patients with decompensated cirrhosis or in patients who have failed previous bulevirtide and/or pegIFN therapy. In the Replicor Compassionate Access Program including 33 CHD patients with advanced chronic liver disease treated with REP2139-Mg (REP) and nucleotide analog, with or without pegylated interferon, loss of HBsAg was observed in 27% by end of treatment and remained undetectable in 18% after one year follow up, inferring HDV sustained virological response and HBV functional cure for these patients. Among the 6 patients with decompensated cirrhosis, five patients had virological response and two patients presented significant clinical improvement with ascites reduction, with no REP-related serious adverse events. Overall, the efficacy of REP, in this "difficult to treat" population, appears promising with acceptable tolerability and no safety issues and should be evaluated in a protocol driven, response-guided clinical trial.