Circassia Extends its Clinical-Stage Portfolio With Phase II Trials of T-Cell Vaccines Against House Dust Mite and Cat Allergies

21-Jan-2010 - United Kingdom

Circassia Ltd announced that it has initiated phase II clinical trials of its T-cell vaccines targeting house dust mite and cat allergies. With the start of these studies, and the ongoing trial of Circassia's ragweed allergy (hay fever) T-cell vaccine, the company now has three clinical development programmes in phase II. Each of these builds on earlier successful phase II results with the company's ToleroMune(R) technology, which scientifically validated the novel use of T-cell vaccines in the treatment of allergy, and identified the optimal dosing regimens to progress into late-stage development.

In Circassia's cat allergy trial, which is underway in Canada, 210 patients will be randomised to receive placebo or one of two regimes of the company's T-cell vaccine. This study is the first to test Circassia's novel room-temperature-stable ToleroMune formulation. This offers great potential practical advantages compared with existing allergy desensitisation treatments, which are inherently unstable and require cold chain distribution and storage. During the study, the volunteers will be exposed to aerosolised cat dander in an environmental exposure chamber, both before and after treatment, to measure the effect of the ToleroMune T-cell vaccine.

Circassia has also initiated the first clinical study of its T-cell vaccine against house dust mite allergy, which is underway in Quebec, Canada. The double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial will include 50 allergy patients. The active treatment groups will receive four standardised doses of the ToleroMune T-cell vaccine over several weeks. This approach contrasts with current immunotherapies, which require many months of escalating doses and maintenance treatment over a number of years. During the trial investigators will 'challenge' the volunteers with house dust mite allergens to assess the therapeutic effect of Circassia's T-cell vaccine.

https://www.bionity.com/en/news/112077/circassia-extends-its-clinical-stage-portfolio-with-phase-ii-trials-of-t-cell-vaccines-against-house-dust-mite-and-cat-allergies.html