Anthera acquires license to anti-inflammatory drugs

The PLA2 inhibitors were developed by Lilly and Shionogi as part of their collaboration and is designed to treat acute chest syndrome (ACS) in life-threatening diseases such as sickle cell disease, acute lung injury, atherosclerosis, and psoriasis.

Recent academic clinical studies in sickle cell patients have demonstrated that serum PLA2 levels rise in advance of the acute chest syndrome, creating a unique opportunity for early intervention particularly in sickle cell disease.

“Recent developments in the understanding of the biological activity of phospholipases and inflammation provide the opportunity for a renewed scientific approach with this program,” stated Paul Truex, president and CEO of Anthera.

Anthera will initiate clinical studies later this year for the program's lead compound A-001 as an early intervention therapy for acute chest syndrome in patients with underlying sickle cell disease.

As part of this comprehensive license, Anthera has also received rights to the clinical stage oral PLA2 inhibitor A-002 and several back up compounds in later stages of pre-clinical development. Anthera intends to announce further development of these programs in the coming months

Worldwide, nearly 200,000 suffer from some form of sickle cell disease which results in an estimated 60,000 hospitalizations per year and significantly reduces life expectancy. Acute chest syndrome is a severe respiratory complication of sickle cell disease and is the leading cause of death in patients with this life threatening genetic disorder.