Highlights • Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines elicit effective T cell dependent responses. • Conjugate and free polysaccharide vaccines were compared in older adults. • Conjugate responses were ...significantly greater for majority of serotypes. • Conjugate vaccine could provide enhanced immunity against pneumococcal disease.
Previous research has suggested that the thiazolidinedione rosiglitazone may possess anti-psoriatic activity.
To compare the efficacy and safety of rosiglitazone with that of placebo in the treatment ...of chronic plaque psoriasis.
Two large-scale, randomized, double-blind, multicenter studies (study A, n = 1563; study B, n = 1032) were conducted over 52 weeks (plus optional 44 weeks safety extension) in an outpatient setting. The subjects (aged 18-75 years) had moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis affecting >or=10% body surface area (BSA) with plaques of any elevation above normal-appearing skin (or >or=6% BSA involvement with marked elevation) and had not used phototherapy during the previous month or thiazolidinediones within the previous 3 months. Rosiglitazone was administered as 2, 4, or 8 mg tablets once daily. The main outcome measure was the proportion of subjects achieving >or=75% improvement from baseline in the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI 75) at week 26.
Rosiglitazone was well tolerated but no more effective than placebo for moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis. However, there was a large placebo response unrelated to concomitant rescue medication. Interestingly, subjects had been advised to expect a long period before onset of action. At week 26 and across both studies for subjects receiving placebo, the PASI 75 was 9% (48/506) and the PASI 50 (proportion of subjects who achieved at least 50% improvement from baseline) was 27% (135/506). In addition, few subjects withdrew from placebo or rosiglitazone treatment because of 'lack of efficacy' and the majority persisted in the year-long study.
While these large-scale, robust studies demonstrated that rosiglitazone is not active in psoriasis, they also showed that for a large proportion of subjects receiving placebo, the expectation of a successful treatment, the favorable adverse effect profile of the drug, and the supportive environment of a clinical study conferred beneficial effects. These results may have implications for the design of future placebo-controlled studies in patients with psoriasis.
PUPs A-LONG evaluated safety and efficacy of recombinant factor VIII Fc fusion protein (rFVIIIFc) in previously untreated patients (PUPs) with hemophilia A. This open-label, Phase 3 study enrolled ...male PUPs (<6 years) with severe hemophilia A to receive rFVIIIFc. The primary endpoint was occurrence of inhibitor development. Secondary endpoints included annualized bleed rate (ABR). Of 103 subjects receiving ≥1 dose of rFVIIIFc, 80 (78%) were aged <1 year at study start, 20 (19%) had family history of inhibitors, and 82 (80%) had high-risk F8 mutations. Twenty subjects began on prophylaxis, while 81 began an on-demand regimen (69 later switched to prophylaxis). Eighty-seven (81%) subjects completed the study. Inhibitor incidence was 31.1% (95% confidence interval CI: 21.8%–41.7%) in subjects with ≥10 exposure days (or inhibitor); high-titer inhibitor incidence was 15.6% (95% CI: 8.8%–24.7%). The median (range) time to high-titer inhibitor development was 9 (4–14) exposure days. Twenty-eight (27%) subjects experienced 32 rFVIIIFc treatment-related adverse events; most were inhibitor development. There was 1 non–treatment-related death due to intracranial hemorrhage (onset prior to first rFVIIIFc dose). The overall median (interquartile range) ABR was 1.49 (0.00–4.40) for subjects on variable prophylaxis dosing regimens. In this study of rFVIIIFc in pediatric PUPs with severe hemophilia A, overall inhibitor development was within expected range, although high-titer inhibitor development was on the low end of the range reported in literature. rFVIIIFc was well-tolerated and effective as prophylaxis and for treatment of bleeds. This trial is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02234323).
Cold agglutinin disease (CAD) is a rare, autoimmune, classical complement pathway (CP)-mediated hemolytic anemia. Sutimlimab selectively inhibits C1s of the C1 complex, preventing CP activation while ...leaving the alternative and lectin pathways intact. In Part A (26 weeks) of the open-label, single-arm, Phase 3 CARDINAL study in patients with CAD and a recent history of transfusion, sutimlimab demonstrated rapid effects on hemolysis and anemia. Results of the CARDINAL study Part B (2-year extension) study, described herein, demonstrated that sutimlimab sustains improvements in hemolysis, anemia, and quality of life over a median of 144 weeks of treatment. Mean last-available on-treatment values in Part B were improved from baseline for hemoglobin (12.2 g/dL on-treatment versus 8.6 g/dL at baseline), bilirubin (16.5 μmol/L on-treatment versus 52.1 μmol/L at baseline), and FACIT-Fatigue scores (40.5 on-treatment versus 32.4 at baseline). In the 9-week follow-up period after sutimlimab cessation, CP inhibition was reversed, and hemolytic markers and fatigue scores approached pre-sutimlimab values. Overall, sutimlimab was generally well tolerated in Part B. All 22 patients experienced ≥1 treatment-emergent adverse event (TEAE); 12 (54.5%) patients experienced ≥1 serious TEAE, including seven (31.8%) with ≥1 serious infection. Three patients discontinued due to a TEAE. No patients developed systemic lupus erythematosus or meningococcal infections. After cessation of sutimlimab, most patients reported adverse events consistent with recurrence of CAD. In conclusion, the CARDINAL 2-year results provide evidence of sustained sutimlimab effects for CAD management, but that disease activity reoccurs after treatment cessation. NCT03347396. Registered November 20, 2017.
Cold agglutinin disease (CAD) is a rare, autoimmune, classical complement pathway (CP)‐mediated hemolytic anemia. Sutimlimab selectively inhibits C1s of the C1 complex, preventing CP activation while ...leaving the alternative and lectin pathways intact. In Part A (26 weeks) of the open‐label, single‐arm, Phase 3 CARDINAL study in patients with CAD and a recent history of transfusion, sutimlimab demonstrated rapid effects on hemolysis and anemia. Results of the CARDINAL study Part B (2‐year extension) study, described herein, demonstrated that sutimlimab sustains improvements in hemolysis, anemia, and quality of life over a median of 144 weeks of treatment. Mean last‐available on‐treatment values in Part B were improved from baseline for hemoglobin (12.2 g/dL on‐treatment versus 8.6 g/dL at baseline), bilirubin (16.5 μmol/L on‐treatment versus 52.1 μmol/L at baseline), and FACIT‐Fatigue scores (40.5 on‐treatment versus 32.4 at baseline). In the 9‐week follow‐up period after sutimlimab cessation, CP inhibition was reversed, and hemolytic markers and fatigue scores approached pre‐sutimlimab values. Overall, sutimlimab was generally well tolerated in Part B. All 22 patients experienced ≥1 treatment‐emergent adverse event (TEAE); 12 (54.5%) patients experienced ≥1 serious TEAE, including seven (31.8%) with ≥1 serious infection. Three patients discontinued due to a TEAE. No patients developed systemic lupus erythematosus or meningococcal infections. After cessation of sutimlimab, most patients reported adverse events consistent with recurrence of CAD. In conclusion, the CARDINAL 2‐year results provide evidence of sustained sutimlimab effects for CAD management, but that disease activity reoccurs after treatment cessation. NCT03347396. Registered November 20, 2017.
PUPs B-LONG evaluated the safety and efficacy of recombinant factor IX Fc fusion protein (rFIXFc) in previously untreated patients (PUPs) with hemophilia B. In this open-label, phase 3 study, male ...PUPs (age <18 years) with hemophilia B (≤2 IU/dL of endogenous factor IX FIX) were to receive treatment with rFIXFc. Primary end point was occurrence of inhibitor development, with a secondary end point of annualized bleed rate (ABR). Of 33 patients who received ≥1 dose of rFIXFc, 26 (79%) were age <1 year at study entry and 6 (18%) had a family history of inhibitors. Twenty-eight patients (85%) received prophylaxis; median dosing interval was 7 days, with an average weekly dose of 58 IU/kg. Twenty-seven patients (82%) completed the study. Twenty-one (64%), 26 (79%), and 28 patients (85%) had ≥50, ≥20, and ≥10 exposure days (EDs) to rFIXFc, respectively. One patient (3.03%; 95% confidence interval, 0.08% to 15.76%) developed a low-titer inhibitor after 11 EDs; no high-titer inhibitors were detected. Twenty-three patients (70%) had 58 treatment-emergent serious adverse events; 2 were assessed as related (FIX inhibition and hypersensitivity in 1 patient, resulting in withdrawal). Median ABR was 1.24 (interquartile range, 0.00-2.49) for patients receiving prophylaxis. Most (>85%) bleeding episodes required only 1 infusion for bleed resolution. In this first study reporting results with rFIXFc in pediatric PUPs with hemophilia B, rFIXFc was well tolerated, with the adverse event profile as expected in a pediatric hemophilia population. rFIXFc was effective, both as prophylaxis and in the treatment of bleeding episodes. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT02234310.
•PUPs B-LONG is the first study of extended half-life rFIXFc in previously untreated hemophilia B patients.•rFIXFc was effective and well tolerated in PUPs with hemophilia B, with an incidence of inhibitors of 3%.
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