CHICAGO – In celiac disease, one of the most promising areas of research includes the development of treatments that target HLA-DQ2 gene variants associated with the condition.
There are a number of clinical trials underway, including one for the investigational drug TPM502, which carries three gluten-specific antigenic peptides with overlapping T-cell epitopes for the HLA-DQ2.5 gene. And, research is underway for the novel KAN-101, which aims to restore the immune tolerance of gluten by targeting receptors on the liver. It received Fast Track designation by the Food and Drug Administration in 2022.
During the annual Digestive Disease Week® (DDW), researchers shared the results from a new proof-of-concept study for DONQ52, a bispecific antibody that targets HLA-DQ2.5. DONQ52 was found to be highly effective in blocking gluten-specific T cells, said investigator Jason A. Tye-Din, PhD, a researcher with The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne, and an investigator with Chugai Pharmaceutical, which is funding the DONQ52 research which has since advanced to a phase 1 study of 56 patients.
There are no existing drug therapies for celiac disease, which leaves patients with a lifelong, and strict, gluten-free diet as treatment. This strategy, however, often fails to induce mucosal healing or symptom control, and has stimulated a search for novel therapies, said Melinda Y.
