Clinical trial NCT04788797: AN-PEP on Gluten Exposure in Celiacs
Official title: Effect of the Endopeptidase AN-PEP on Gluten Exposure in Real Life in Celiac Disease Patients Treated With a Long-term Gluten-free Diet. Exploratory, Interventional, Prospective, Controlled and Double Blind Study
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: PHASE4
Conditions: Celiac Disease
Keywords: celiac disease
endopeptidases
gliadin immunogenic peptides
Lead sponsor: Dr. C. Bonorino Udaondo Gastroenterology Hospital
Sponsor class: OTHER_GOV
First posted: 2021-03-09
Enrollment: 40
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 17
Maximum age (years): 75
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The AN-PEP, an Aspergillus niger derived endopeptidase, has been developed aiming to produce a complete luminal detoxification of gluten. If AN-PEP is able to produce a complete luminal digestion of gluten in the context of the real life of celiac disease (CeD) patients is unknown. Hypothetically, AN-PEP effect could be detected by the reduction in the excretion of GIP in stool and urine.

The objective of this study is to establish the effect of the daily administration of AN-PEP compared to placebo on GIP excretion in an interventional, prospective, randomized, comparative, double-blind study in conditions mimicking the real-life of CeD treated patients. The study consists in a four-week GFD stabilization period followed by a four-week study period with patients randomized to receive active AN-PEP or placebo in a blindly manner.

Detailed description: Background: The strict gluten-free diet (GFD) is the only accepted treatment for celiac disease (CeD). However, performing a strict diet is still a non solved problem affecting the future of patients. In a real-life study it was recently shown that 89% of treated CeD patients performing a strict diet have contact with dietary gluten at least one week per 4 weeks of testing and averaging 3 weeks per month. Furthermore, 40% of patients excreted gliadin immunogenic peptides (GIP) (surrogated markers of gluten exposure) in the range for immunological activation and intestinal mucosal damage. Endopeptidases to produce a complete intraluminal proteolysis of gluten avoiding antigenic stimulation were produced to avoid damage of continuous gluten exposure. AN-PEP is an Aspergillus niger derived endopeptidase has been produced aiming to luminal detoxification of gluten have been explored for its clinical effect. However, whether AN-PEP is able to completely destroy gluten in the context of the real life of CeD patients is still unknown. Hypothesis: The investigators estimate that AN-PEP is an effective therapy for proteolysis for gluten exposure in the real-life of CeD patients and that the effect could be detected by the reduction in the excretion of GIP in stool and urine based on a clinical research model that we developed. AIMS: to establish the effect of daily administration of AN-PEP compared to placebo in terms of: (1) frequency of GIP excretion in stool and urine episodes in 4 weeks; (2) concentration of GIP excretion for both arms; and (3) differences in proportion of patients excreting GIP above the threshold for mucosal damage (\>2 µg/g of GIP in stool or \>12 ng/mL in urine). Study design: Interventional, prospective, randomized, comparative, double-blind study. Components: 1- four-week GFD stabilization period; 2-Randomization. 3- four4-week study period: Patients blinded-receive active AN-PEP (GliadinX®) at a dose of 2 capsules/breakfast, lunch and dinner (study arm), or 2 capsules at same time points of placebo (specially designed and prepared for the study) (Placebo arm).

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Over 18 years
* Diagnosis of celiac disease
* Completion of Gluten-free Diet for at least two years without evidence of voluntary violations.
* Patients who do not report symptoms of constipation or illnesses or medications (cathartics, antidiarrheals, etc.) that alter the bowel movement rhythm (accepted rhythm: between 2 times / day to 1 every other day) and diuresis (diuretics). Proton-pump inhibitor.
* Signature of the informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients not interested or unable to collaborate with the questionnaires and collection of fecal matter.
* Place of residence of the participant more than 4 hours from the hospital, which interferes with the viability of the sample.
* Complicated CD (refractory CD type II, ulcerative jejunoileitis, lymphoma).
* Concomitant pathologies that are decompensated or untreated at study entry (type I or II diabetes mellitus; hyperthyroidism; hypothyroidism; kidney failure,).

Primary outcomes:
measure: Frequency of GIP excretion in stool
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Weekly concentration of GIP excretion in stool
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Proportion of patients excreting GIP
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Frequency of GIP excretion in urine
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Weekly concentration of GIP excretion in urine
timeFrame: 4 weeks
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Clinical effect of AN-PEP vs placebo
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Differences in quality of life scores
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Major symptoms
timeFrame: 4 weeks
measure: Biochemical effect of AN-PEP vs. placebo
timeFrame: 4 weeks
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Ciudad Autonoma de Buenos Aires
country: Argentina
facility: Dr. C. Bonorino Udaondo Gastroenterology Hospital
state: Buenos Aires
Study officials:
affiliation: Dr. C. Bonorino Udaondo Gastroenterology Hospital
name: Edgardo G Smecuol
role: STUDY_CHAIR
References:
citation: Pinto-Sanchez MI, Hall GB, Ghajar K, Nardelli A, Bolino C, Lau JT, Martin FP, Cominetti O, Welsh C, Rieder A, Traynor J, Gregory C, De Palma G, Pigrau M, Ford AC, Macri J, Berger B, Bergonzelli G, Surette MG, Collins SM, Moayyedi P, Bercik P. Probiotic Bifidobacterium longum NCC3001 Reduces Depression Scores and Alters Brain Activity: A Pilot Study in Patients With Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Gastroenterology. 2017 Aug;153(2):448-459.e8. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2017.05.003. Epub 2017 May 5.
citation: Castellano E, Attanasio R, Gianotti L, Cesario F, Tassone F, Borretta G. Forearm DXA Increases the Rate of Patients With Asymptomatic Primary Hyperparathyroidism Meeting Surgical Criteria. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2016 Jul;101(7):2728-32. doi: 10.1210/jc.2016-1513. Epub 2016 Apr 12.
citation: Ricano-Ponce I, Gutierrez-Achury J, Costa AF, Deelen P, Kurilshikov A, Zorro MM, Platteel M, van der Graaf A; Consortium for the study of genetic associations of celiac disease in Latin-America; Sanna S, Daffra O, Zhernakova A, Fu J, Trynka G, Smecuol E, Niveloni SI, Bai JC, Kumar V, Wijmenga C. Immunochip meta-analysis in European and Argentinian populations identifies two novel genetic loci associated with celiac disease. Eur J Hum Genet. 2020 Mar;28(3):313-323. doi: 10.1038/s41431-019-0520-4. Epub 2019 Oct 7.
citation: Pinto-Sanchez MI, Bai JC. Toward New Paradigms in the Follow Up of Adult Patients With Celiac Disease on a Gluten-Free Diet. Front Nutr. 2019 Oct 1;6:153. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2019.00153. eCollection 2019.
citation: Penny HA, Raju SA, Lau MS, Marks LJ, Baggus EM, Bai JC, Bassotti G, Bontkes HJ, Carroccio A, Danciu M, Derakhshan MH, Ensari A, Ganji A, Green PHR, Johnson MW, Ishaq S, Lebwohl B, Levene A, Maxim R, Mohaghegh Shalmani H, Rostami-Nejad M, Rowlands D, Spiridon IA, Srivastava A, Volta U, Villanacci V, Wild G, Cross SS, Rostami K, Sanders DS. Accuracy of a no-biopsy approach for the diagnosis of coeliac disease across different adult cohorts. Gut. 2021 May;70(5):876-883. doi: 10.1136/gutjnl-2020-320913. Epub 2020 Nov 2.
citation: Seiler CL, Kiflen M, Stefanolo JP, Bai JC, Bercik P, Kelly CP, Verdu EF, Moayyedi P, Pinto-Sanchez MI. Probiotics for Celiac Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Am J Gastroenterol. 2020 Oct;115(10):1584-1595. doi: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000000749.
citation: Stefanolo JP, Talamo M, Dodds S, de la Paz Temprano M, Costa AF, Moreno ML, Pinto-Sanchez MI, Smecuol E, Vazquez H, Gonzalez A, Niveloni SI, Maurino E, Verdu EF, Bai JC. Real-World Gluten Exposure in Patients With Celiac Disease on Gluten-Free Diets, Determined From Gliadin Immunogenic Peptides in Urine and Fecal Samples. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2021 Mar;19(3):484-491.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2020.03.038. Epub 2020 Mar 23.
citation: Smecuol E, Constante M, Temprano MP, Costa AF, Moreno ML, Pinto-Sanchez MI, Vazquez H, Stefanolo JP, Gonzalez AF, D'Adamo CR, Niveloni SI, Maurino E, Verdu EF, Bai JC. Effect of Bifidobacterium infantis NLS super strain in symptomatic coeliac disease patients on long-term gluten-free diet - an exploratory study. Benef Microbes. 2020 Oct 12;11(6):527-534. doi: 10.3920/BM2020.0016. Epub 2020 Oct 9.