When the protein TLR7, or toll-like receptor 7 — which normally triggers an immune response against viruses and bacteria — instead builds up in immune cells, the immune system may turn against its own body and cause systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a study has found. The study, “Disrupted…
China’s regulatory body has given Gracell Biotechnologies the green light to launch a Phase 1/2 clinical trial testing GC012F, an experimental dual-targeting CAR T-cell therapy, in people with difficult-to-treat systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The decision by China’s National Medical Products Administration comes shortly after the U.S. Food and…
Otsuka Pharmaceutical is seeking approval in Japan to manufacture and market Lupkynis (voclosporin) for the treatment of lupus nephritis, a kidney complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The new drug application filed by Otsuka will be reviewed and decided upon by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour,…
A CAR T-cell therapy targeting B-cells, a type of immune cells, was found to clear disease-causing autoantibodies from the bloodstream of eight people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) — without compromising the patients’ ability to respond to vaccines — new trial data show. The experimental therapy also drove the…
Kyverna Therapeutics has signed a research funding deal with Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, in Germany, to study how therapies targeting immune B-cells may improve clinical outcomes of people with whole-body, or systemic, autoimmune diseases such as lupus. The deal also covers studies on CAR T-cell therapies, including Kyverna’s experimental…
Lupkynis (voclosporin) continues to be safe and to protect kidney function when taken for up to three years by patients with lupus nephritis, a kidney complication of lupus. That’s according to the full results from AURORA 2 (NCT03597464), a Phase 3 extension study that evaluated how safe…
The Lupus Research Alliance has named the winners of this year’s Awards to Promote Diversity in Lupus Research, all from underrepresented minority groups who are interested in studying lupus. Four researchers were selected to receive a Career Development Award, which provides up to $600,000 over four years to…
Trethera will use a $0.6 million Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant to advance TRE-515, its lead candidate for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The grant comes from the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), from which the company…
A new project incubating at Duke Advanced Practice Provider Leadership Institute (APPLI) seeks to foster a team approach to lupus care at Duke Health in Durham, North Carolina. The project is being led by Keisha-Gaye O’Garo, a clinical psychologist, and Karen McCain, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, both from…
A type of anti-DNA autoantibodies that also block an enzyme called DNase1L3 may cause more harm to people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) than those that only bind to genetic material, a study has found. These results, the researchers say, shed new light on the origin of SLE, the…