Two novel monoclonal antibody therapies delivered subcutaneously appear to have a significant impact on disease severity in patients with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis (AD), without raising safety concerns, suggest two early stage trials.
The research was presented at the annual meeting of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.
In one of the studies, TREK-AD, a phase 2b study, 302 patients were randomly assigned to one of four doses and two dosing schedules of eblasakimab (ASLAN Pharmaceuticals), which targets interleukin (IL)-13, or placebo.
Eblasakimab showed significant improvements in Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) scores vs placebo across doses and schedules, said presenter Eric Simpson, MD, professor of dermatology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland. The "speed of onset was rapid" with eblasakimab, "with clinical improvements seen as early as week 2," he said.
In the STREAM-AD trial, nearly 400 patients were randomly assigned to one of several doses and schedules of amlitelimab (Kymab Ltd), an anti-OX40 ligand antibody, or placebo. Treatment resulted in significantly larger reductions in EASI scores from baseline with the novel therapy compared with placebo.
These reductions were "clinically meaningful," said presenter Stephan Weidinger, MD, PhD, Department of Dermatology and Allergy, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany, who also noted amlitelimab was "well-tolerated."
