Pharvaris oral HAE drug shows positive results

Pharvaris, a clinical-stage company focused on the discovery and development of novel oral B2-receptor antagonists for the treatment of hereditary angioedema (HAE) and other B2-receptor-mediated indications, announced data from a late-breaking poster planned for presentation at the recently canceled annual meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).

Pharvaris established a proof-of-concept model for HAE in non-human primates. In this model, PHA121 inhibited bradykinin-induced changes in blood pressure at all doses tested (0.1, 0.3, 1, 3, and 10 mg/kg given orally) with a faster onset of action than icatibant. The duration of the effect was dose dependent.

“These results provide confidence in PHA121’s clinical profile for the treatment of hereditary angioedema,” said Berndt Modig, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Pharvaris. “Combined with preliminary findings from our ongoing Phase 1 study, these data demonstrate that PHA121 is a potent, orally available bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist.”

The objective of the study was to investigate the ability of PHA121 to attenuate blood-pressure changes induced by bradykinin injection. Freely moving monkeys were challenged with bradykinin, resulting in a transient drop in blood pressure. Bradykinin is an endogenous peptide known to mediate signs and symptoms of HAE. The model was validated utilizing icatibant, a marketed injectable B2 receptor antagonist, providing back-translation from human clinical experience with icatibant.

The abstract of the poster was published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2019.12.094). The poster is available on the AAAAI website (https://education.aaaai.org/sites/default/files/L37%20Lesage_1.pdf) and on the Pharvaris website.  

Source: Pharvaris (press release)