WITHDRAWN: EFFICACY, SAFETY, AND TOLERABILITY OF OMILANCOR IN A PHASE 2 RANDOMIZED, DOUBLE-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL OF PATIENTS WITH ULCERATIVE COLITIS
Authors: Leber Andrew , Hontecillas Raquel , Tubau-Juni Nuria , Lichtiger Simon , Bassaganya-Riera Josep 
Published: January 2022

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Omilancor is an oral, once-daily, gut-restricted, small molecule, first-in-class therapeutic for Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) that targets the novel LANCL2 pathway. Through LANCL2 activation, omilancor increases the suppressive capacity of regulatory immune cells, including regulatory CD4+ T cells (Tregs), locally within the intestinal mucosa. In a Phase I study in normal healthy volunteers no changes in AEs or trends in safety laboratory trends were observed up to daily oral doses of 7500 mg/day.

METHODS
In a Phase 2, proof of concept, double blind, parallel-group study, adult patients with Mayo Clinic scores (MCS) of 4 – 10 and endoscopic subscores of 2 or more were randomly assigned to groups given omilancor 440 mg QD (n=66), omilancor 880 mg QD (n=66) or placebo (n=66) for 12 weeks. The primary endpoint was clinical remission after 12 weeks as defined by rectal bleeding (RB) equal to 0, stool frequency (SF) equal to 0 or 1 and endoscopic appearance (MES) equal to 0 or 1. A modified intent to treat (mITT) population was defined by patients with RB &gt; 0, histological activity and elevated fecal calprotectin (FCP) at baseline. Secondary endpoints included histological remission as defined by a Geboes score &lt; 3.1 with absence of neutrophils in the lamina propria, endoscopic remission as defined by a MES &lt; 2, normalization of FCP and pharmacokinetics (PK) of omilancor in stool, tissue and plasma.

RESULTS
Oral omilancor was well tolerated with no trends in AE profile observed and most AEs of mild severity and no dose-limiting toxicities. In the mITT population, clinical remission was induced in 30.4% of omilancor treated patients relative to 3.7% of patients given placebo (Δ = 26.7, p = 0.01), thereby meeting the primary endpoint. Endoscopic remission was induced in 41.7% of patients treated with omilancor relative to 18.6% of patients given placebo (Δ = 23.1, p = 0.07). Histological remission was induced in 41.7% of patients treated with omilancor relative to 22.2% of patients given placebo (Δ = 19.5, p = 0.14). In patients with elevated baseline FCP, normalization occurred in 43.8% of the omilancor 880 mg group and 40.6% of the omilancor 440 mg group relative to 21.4% of the placebo group after 2 weeks (p = 0.048). PK analysis validated a gut-restricted profile with stable drug levels in stool over the 12-week treatment period and penetration into colonic biopsy tissue with limited systemic exposure. Reduction of patient reported outcomes occurred during the OLE with nearly 90% of patients reaching SF ≤ 1 and RB = 0 after 36 weeks of open-label treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
Once a day oral dosing with omilancor was well-tolerated and induced clinical remission in a Phase II mild to moderate UC population. A Phase II study in CD and a Phase III program in UC (PACIFY) were initiated in 2021 and are currently recruiting.