Biodexa Pharmaceuticals PLC (“Biodexa” or “the Company”), (Nasdaq: BDRX), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of innovative products for the treatment of diseases with unmet medical needs, announced the filing of a Clinical Trial Application (CTA) with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for its Serenta trial in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), a mostly inherited disease that, if left untreated, almost always leads to colorectal cancer. The only current treatment option is sequential resection of much of the gastrointestinal tract.
A CTA is the formal regulatory submission required to obtain approval to begin a clinical trial in Europe and is similar to the Investigational New Drug (IND) application process in the United States. if approved, it would permit the Serenta trial to proceed in Europe, initially covering clinical sites in Denmark, Germany, Netherlands and Spain with Italy expected to be added in due course.
Commenting, Stephen Stamp CEO and CFO of Biodexa said “Following Fast Track Designation by the FDA, Orphan Drug designation in Europe and initiation of our first clinical site in the US, the filing of our CTA with EMA is the latest in a series of important milestones for our eRapa Phase 3 program in FAP. Congratulations to our team, our collaborators at Emtora Biosciences and our European CRO, Precision for Medicine. This would not have been possible without the support of CPRIT which has awarded $20 million in grant funding to support the program”.
The Serenta trial (NCT06950385) is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 3 registrational study designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of eRapa in patients diagnosed with FAP. The first site, in the US, is now open and actively screening eligible participants. Following the 106 day approval timeline for the CTA, it is expected the European sites will begin enrolling in the fourth quarter of this year.
Familial adenomatous polyposis is a rare, inherited disorder characterized by the development of hundreds to thousands of colorectal polyps and a near-100% lifetime risk of colorectal cancer if left untreated. There is a significant unmet need for effective, less invasive therapies for FAP patients. FAP is characterized as a proliferation of polyps in the colon and/or rectum, usually occurring in mid-teens. There is no approved therapeutic option for treating FAP patients, for whom active surveillance and surgical resection of the colon and/or rectum remain the standard of care. If untreated, FAP typically leads to cancer of the colon and/or rectum. There is a significant hereditary component to FAP with a reported prevalence of one in 5,000 to 10,000 in the US1 and one in 11,300 to 37,600 in Europe2. Importantly, mTOR has been shown to be over-expressed in FAP polyps – thereby underscoring the rationale for using an mTOR inhibitor like eRapa to treat FAP.
eRapa is a proprietary oral formulation of rapamycin, also known as sirolimus. Rapamycin is an mTOR (mammalian Target Of Rapamycin) inhibitor. mTOR has been shown to have a significant role in the signalling pathway that regulates cellular metabolism, growth and proliferation and is activated during tumorgenesis3.. Rapamycin is approved in the US for organ rejection in renal transplantation as Rapamune®. Through the use of nanotechnology and pH sensitive polymers, eRapa is designed to address the poor bioavailability, variable pharmacokinetics and toxicity generally associated with the currently available forms of rapamycin. eRapa is protected by a number of issued patents which extend through 2035, with other pending applications potentially providing further protection beyond 2035.
1. www.rarediseases.org
2. www.orpha.net
3. Tian et al., mTOR Signaling in Cancer and mTOR Inhibitors in Solid Tumor Targeting Therapy, Int J Mol Sci. 2019 Feb; 20(3): 755
Biodexa Pharmaceuticals PLC (listed on NASDAQ: BDRX) is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of innovative products for the treatment of diseases with unmet medical needs. The Company’s lead development programs include eRapa, under development for Familial Adenomatous Polyposis and Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer; tolimidone, under development for the treatment of type 1 diabetes; and MTX110, which is being studied in aggressive rare/orphan brain cancer indications.
eRapa is a proprietary oral formulation of rapamycin, also known as sirolimus. Rapamycin is an mTOR (mammalian Target Of Rapamycin) inhibitor. mTOR has been shown to have a significant role in the signalling pathway that regulates cellular metabolism, growth and proliferation and is activated during tumorigenesis.
Tolimidone is an orally delivered, potent and selective inhibitor of Lyn kinase. Lyn is a member of the Src family of protein tyrosine kinases, which is mainly expressed in hematopoietic cells, in neural tissues, liver, and adipose tissue. Tolimidone demonstrates glycaemic control via insulin sensitization in animal models of diabetes and has the potential to become a first in class blood glucose modulating agent.
MTX110 is a solubilized formulation of the histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, panobinostat. This proprietary formulation enables delivery of the product via convection-enhanced delivery (CED) at chemotherapeutic doses directly to the site of the tumor, by-passing the blood-brain barrier and potentially avoiding systemic toxicity.
Biodexa is supported by three proprietary drug delivery technologies focused on improving the bio-delivery and bio-distribution of medicines. Biodexa’s headquarters and R&D facility is in Cardiff, UK.
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