ALV-107 utilises the proprietary Alivio inflammation-targeting technology. The data were presented at the 2017 Drug Discovery and Therapy World Congress in Boston, Massachusetts.
"One of the greatest needs in urology is for a targeted therapy that can relieve the pain and inflammation of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome for extended periods of time," said J. Curtis Nickel, Professor and CIHR Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Urologic Pain and Inflammation at Queen's University and Clinical Advisory Board member.
"These promising, preclinical results suggest that ALV-107 may offer long-lasting relief for the many who suffer from this chronic and debilitating disease. I look forward to the acceleration of ALV-107 into the clinic and to exploring the full potential application of this targeted treatment approach."
Pain levels, as measured by the mean nociceptive threshold, were statistically indistinguishable between the pain-free baseline and the ALV-107-treated group (n=8; at 2 hr, p=0.80; 4 hr, p=0.99; 24 hr, p=0.99). In contrast, the conventional lidocaine-treated group was only statistically indistinguishable from the pain-free baseline at 2 hours post-treatment (p=0.87). Furthermore, ALV-107 relieved pain at all studied time points post-therapy (vs. vehicle-only control: at 2 hr, p=0.002; 4 hr, p=0.002; 24 hr, p=0.0003). In contrast, the conventional lidocaine-treated group showed statistically significant pain relief only 2 hours post-treatment (p=0.03).
The Alivio technology is designed to adhere selectively to inflamed tissue and remain adhered to deliver the incorporated medication based on the levels of inflammation, potentially enabling improved properties for the drug while minimising its exposure to healthy tissue and systemic side effects. Inflammation is a key feature of IC/BPS, which is a chronic condition affecting as many as 12 million people in the US and is characterised by recurring pelvic pain and frequent urination. Current treatments fail to control pain in many patients, particularly patients with Hunner's lesions, which is estimated to affect between 5-10% of IC/BPS patients in the US.
To support this programme in IC/BPS, PureTech Health has formed a Clinical Advisory Board consisting of key experts who have played a seminal role in the research and development of various medical therapies for several chronic pelvic pain conditions, including IC/BPS:
· J. Curtis Nickel, MD, FRCSC – Professor and CIHR Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Urologic Pain and Inflammation at Queen's University (Kingston, ON)
· Kenneth Peters, MD – Professor and Chairman of Urology at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (Auburn Hills, MI)
· Robert M. Moldwin, MD, FACS – Director, Pelvic Pain Treatment Center at the Arthur Smith Institute for Urology and Associate Professor of Urology at the Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine
The Alivio technology was exclusively licensed from the lab of Jeff Karp, Ph.D., Associate Professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), Harvard Medical School. In March of 2017, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a $1.2 million grant to Professor Jeff Karp's Lab at BWH to support additional research on the technology.