Lupus Vaccine Candidate Passes Phase 2b Study

A French biotech company announced positive Phase IIb results which showed its lupus vaccine candidate could be effective in treating this autoimmune disease.

During this clinical study, IFNα Kinoid significantly reduced the amount of interferons in the blood, proteins that are produced in response to disease-causing microbes, 36 weeks into the study.

Given this promising result, Neovacs plans to move IFNα Kinoid vaccine into Phase III testing.

NEOVACS’s IFNα Kinoid vaccine is made of inactivated IFNα coupled to a carrier protein. This combination of proteins provokes an immune response from white blood cells and stimulates them to produce antibodies against IFNα in lupus patients.

Most vaccines use monoclonal antibodies, which target only one binding site on a disease-causing compound.

Neovacs’ approach, on the other hand, uses polyclonal antibodies, which target all of the binding sites on a disease-causing compound. Furthermore, polyclonal antibodies are less likely to lead to resistance after long treatment periods.

Previously, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast-track status to Neovacs’ vaccine IFNα Kinoid during 2016. 

Lupus is an autoimmune disease that triggers inflammation in different tissues of the body, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Autoimmune diseases happen when the body’s immune system attacks its own tissues.

The most common type of lupus is systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), which affects different parts of the body including internal organs.

SLE is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks its own tissues and causes widespread inflammation and tissue damage in the affected areas. SLE affects the joints, skin, brain, lungs, kidneys, and blood vessels.

There is no cure for lupus, but medical interventions and lifestyle changes can help control it.

Finding a preventive vaccine for lupus has not been easy.

In 2015, Belgian biotech UCB’s lead immunology candidate for treating lupus failed in Phase III, after 9 years of research going into its development.

In March 2018, GSK announced the start of a phase III study investigating Benlysta (belimumab) in combination with rituximab in adult patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).