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news.Lpath, a provider of bioactive-lipid-targeted therapeutics, has initiated dosing in its Phase I clinical trial with iSONEP, the company's drug candidate for age-related macular degeneration and possibly for other ocular diseases.
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iSONEP is the ocular formulation of a monoclonal antibody that targets sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), a bioactive lipid that is dysregulated in cancer and other disorders of inappropriate angiogenesis and inflammation. S1P promotes angiogenesis, inflammation, cell survival, and cell proliferation, all of which have been implicated in age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
In contrast, iSONEP has been shown in various animal models of disease not only to reduce blood-vessel growth and leakiness, but to significantly mitigate ocular fibrosis and to substantially reduce inflammation in the eye.
According to the company, iSONEP has the potential to be an effective wet AMD treatment that may offer significant advantages over exclusively anti-VEGF approaches. It may also act synergistically with them as a combination therapy to address the complex processes and multiple steps that ultimately lead to vision loss for both wet and dry AMD patients.
Scott Pancoast, president and CEO of Lpath, said: “iSONEP is our second compound to enter the clinic. We now have ongoing trials in two important areas – oncology and ophthalmology – demonstrating the potential applicability of bioactive-lipid-targeted antibodies in a broad range of disease.”