Eiger acquires license to pulmonary arterial hypertension program from Stanford University

The technology targets effects of leukotriene B4 (LTB4) for modulating inflammation and immune response in the lung, providing a potential therapeutic approach to treat PAH.

Eiger chief medical officer Joanne Quan said: "Stanford researchers demonstrated for the first time that a naturally-occurring inflammatory substance known as LTB4 is elevated in both animal models of PAH as well as human PAH disease and that elevated LTB4 causes inflammation resulting in arteriole occlusion and hypertension.

"Targeted pharmacologic inhibition of LTB4 reversed PAH disease in treated animals; obstructed arterioles opened, cardiac function improved, and the animals survived."

Eiger said it is committed to undertake a clinical study to assess if blocking the effects of LTB4 may be a useful new treatment for PAH.

The company’s IND has been approved in the US. A Phase 2 clinical trial is due to start early next year.

Eiger has recently signed a license agreement with Nippon Kayaku to develop Bestatin (ubenimex) for PAH as well as other inflammatory diseases involving leukotriene B4 (LTB4).

Bestatin is an oral, small molecule inhibitor of leukotriene A4 hydrolase (LTA4H), the enzyme responsible for converting LTA4 to LTB4.