This open-label, dose escalation study is expected to enroll up to 24 patients chronically infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV. Patient dosing is continuing in the bavituximab HCV/HIV co-infection study at Saint Michael’s Medical Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Patient cohorts will receive ascending dose levels of bavituximab weekly for up to eight weeks. HCV and HIV viral titers and other biomarkers will be evaluated, although they are not formal study endpoints. Bavituximab is a monoclonal antibody in a new class of anti-phosphotidylserine (PS) immunotherapeutics that helps stimulate the body’s immune defenses to destroy both the virus particles and the infected cells.
Steven King, president and CEO of Peregrine, said: “We expect that this new study site for the bavituximab co-infection trial will be a valuable addition to our efforts to ensure that enrollment in the trial proceeds as planned.”