Iptacopan exhibits preliminary success for treatment of IgA nephropathy
A phase 2 study from Novartis on the investigational drug iptacopan – an oral, targeted factor B inhibitor – showed the drug met its primary endpoints in patients with IgA nephropathy.
According to a company press release, iptacopan reduced proteinuria and helped stabilize kidney function in the study, which involved 112 patients who received a 200 mg dose twice daily of the inhibitor.
“These efficacy data, seen after 90 days of treatment, along with the safety profile, offer hope that inhibition of the alternative complement pathway with iptacopan may be an effective way to delay IgAN disease progression,” Jonathan Barratt, PhD, FRCP, lead study author and professor of renal medicine at the University of Leicester, said in the release.
No treatments are currently approved for IgAN, according to Novartis. Iptacopan is being studied for other complement-driven renal diseases, like C3 glomerulopathy and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.
The development of iptacopan with the phase 3 IgAN trial Applause is already underway, Barratt said in the release.
“Complement-driven renal diseases, such as IgAN, are devastating and mostly affect young adults, imposing a high disease burden,” he said. “These new data in IgAN add to the growing body of evidence around the potential of iptacopan to target a key driver in these rare renal diseases.”
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