The study concluded that QR-443 was as effective in delaying the progression of cachexia when given orally as it had been shown to be when administered intra-peritoneally in a previous study. The new data compliments the previous study results demonstrating a correlation between effectiveness and the frequency of administration of the QR-443 compound.
Cachexia is an extremely debilitating and life threatening, wasting syndrome associated with chronic diseases such as cancer, AIDs, chronic renal failure, COPD and rheumatoid arthritis, where inflammation has a significant impact and patients experience loss of weight, muscle atrophy, fatigue, weakness and decreased appetite.
QR-443 has been shown in previous preclinical studies to inhibit the production of TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma and reduced other inflammatory cytokines associated with Cachexia.
“These findings in addition to previous work show that the compound warrants continued R&D. The company will be preparing experiments to support the significance of this data with continued research,” said Dr Richard Rosenbloom, COO of Quigley Pharma.