COYA302 (Coya Therapeutics, Houston, U.S.) is a drug candidate for the treatment of ALS that is currently undergoing a small-scale clinical trial, which was featured on the ALS News Today website last March. The patients who are participating in the trial are remarkable. The patients participating in the trial are showing remarkable results in delaying the progression of the disease.
COYA302 is a pharmaceutical product that combines the immune system signaling molecule IL-2 (Interleukin 2, which regulates the activity of white blood cells) with the fusion protein CTLA-4 Ig (Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Associated Antigen 4), also known as abatacept 4 Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Associated Antigen4), a fusion protein also known as abatacept. The drug has two promising aspects
- Increasing the activity of T regs (Regulatory T Cells) and reducing inflammatory responses
- To reduce inflammation caused by activated monocytes and macrophages
Participants were measured monthly on the ALSFRS-R functional measures and reported a near-zero (0.7 point) functional level change at six months and an average decrease of only 1.5 points after 12 months. Incidentally, prior to the clinical trial, patients had continued to decrease by 1.1 points each month in their monthly functional measurements. This year, they are attempting a large-scale clinical trial and will soon submit an IND (Investigational New Drug) application to the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration). It is expected that its safety and efficacy will be verified in large-scale clinical trials. Late last year, news reported the signing of an agreement between Coya Therapeutics and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratory (Hyderabad, India) for exclusive marketing rights for D r .Reddy’s in the US, Canada, UK and EU.
COYA302, which targets regulatory T-cell dysfunction, is expected to expand the range of indications to include not only ALS, but also FTD (frontotemporal dementia), Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. A pipeline diagram is shown on Coya’s website.
References:
- https://alsnewstoday.com/news/mda-2023-coya-302-therapy-slows-als-progression-early-trial/
- https://alsnewstoday.com/news/coya-dr-reddys-collaborate-advance-coya-302-als-therapy-globally/
- https://alsnewstoday.com/news/coya-fda-aligned-2-meetings-coya-302-development-als-therapy/
- https://coyatherapeutics.com/pipeline/
April 17, 2024 reported by Nobuko Schlough
