PTC : Preliminary Phase 2 Data From Spinal Muscular Atrophy Program Presented

(RTTNews) - PTC Therapeutics Inc. (PTCT) announced the presentation of preliminary clinical data from the company's joint development program with Roche and the SMA Foundation in spinal muscular atrophy or SMA at the Cure SMA Meeting in Orlando, FL.

Preliminary results from an early analysis of Part 1 of the Phase 2 SUNFISH trial evaluating oral RG7916, a small molecule modifier of Survival Mo tor Neuron 2 (SMN2) splicing, were highlighted in an oral presentation.

SMA is a rare genetic disorder that results in neuromuscular disability beginning in infancy and is the leading genetic cause of mortality in infants and young children.

Preliminary results from an early analysis from the ongoing Part 1 of the RG7916 SUNFISH study in Type 2/3 SMA patients demonstrated a dose-dependent increase in SMN2 full length/?7 mRNA ratio of ~ 400% versus baseline, as measured in whole blood. These results provided proof of mechanism for oral small molecule SMN2 splicing modifiers. No drug-related adverse events leading to withdrawal have been observed to date for RG7916.

SUNFISH is a two-part phase 2 clinical study. Part 1 is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, exploratory dose-finding study in Type 2/3 pediatric and adult SMA patients. The primary objective of the first part of the study is to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of RG7916 in patients, and to select the dose for the second part of the study.

The pivotal second part is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, confirmatory study in Type 2/3 SMA patients followed by an open-label extension. The primary objective of the pivotal second part of the study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of RG7916 compared to placebo. SUNFISH is one of three ongoing clinical trials of RG7916, along with FIREFISH and JEWELFISH.