Project description:RVX 208 (RVX-208; RVX000222) is a first-in-class novel small molecule in development by Resverlogix Corporation for acute coronary syndromes, atherosclerosis and Alzheimer disease. It increases the levels of apolipoprotein A1 and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, thereby potentially reducing the risk for cardiovascular disease. This review discusses the key development milestones and therapeutic trials of this drug. This summary has been extracted from Wolters Kluwer's R&D Insight drug pipeline database. R&D Insight tracks and evaluates drug development worldwide through the entire development process, from discovery, through pre-clinical and clinical studies to market launch. This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons License "Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivative 3.0" (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/) which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction, provided the original work is properly cited and not altered.
Project description:Background Current mortality data for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in the United States are based on registries that enrolled patients prior to 2010. We sought to determine mortality in PAH in the modern era using the PHAR (Pulmonary Hypertension Association Registry). Methods and Results We identified all adult patients with PAH enrolled in the PHAR between September 2015 and September 2020 (N=935). We used Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox proportional hazards models to assess mortality at 1, 2, and 3 years. Patients were stratified based on disease severity by 3 validated risk scores. In treatment-naïve patients, we compared survival based on initial treatment strategy. The median age was 56 years (44-68 years), and 76% were women. Of the 935 patients, 483 (52%) were ≤6 months from PAH diagnosis. There were 121 deaths (12.9%) during a median follow-up time of 489 days (281-812 days). The 1-, 2-, and 3-year mortality was 8% (95% CI, 6%-10%), 16% (95% CI, 13%-19%), and 21% (95% CI, 17%-25%), respectively. When stratified into low-, intermediate-, and high-risk PAH, the mortality at 1, 2, and 3 years was 1%, 4% to 6%, and 7% to 11% for low risk; 7% to 8%, 11% to 16%, and 18% to 20% for intermediate risk; and 12% to 19%, 22% to 38%, and 28% to 55% for high risk, respectively. In treatment-naïve patients, initial combination therapy was associated with better 1-year survival (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.43 [95% CI, 0.19-0.95]; P=0.037). Conclusions Mortality in the intermediate- and high-risk patients with PAH remains unacceptably high in the PHAR, suggesting the importance for early diagnosis, aggressive use of available therapies, and the need for better therapeutics.
Project description:Background Pharmacologic treatment for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) improves exercise capacity, functional class, and hemodynamic indexes. However, monthly prescription costs often exceed $4000. We examined associations between (1) medication copayment and (2) annual household income with adherence to pulmonary vasodilator therapy among individuals with PAH. Methods and Results We used administrative claims data from an insured population in the United States to identify individuals diagnosed with PAH between 2015 and 2020. All individuals had ≥1 medication claim for endothelin receptor antagonists, phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors, prostanoids or prostacyclin receptor agonists, or the soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator riociguat. We defined copayments as low, medium, or high, as determined by their distributions for each medication class. Annual household income was categorized as <$40 000, $40 000 to $74 999, and ≥$75 000. The primary outcome was medication adherence, defined by proportion of days covered ≥80%. We studied 4025 adults (aged 65.9±13.3 years; 71.2% women). Compared with those with annual household income ≥$75 000, individuals in the <$40 000 and $40 000 to $74 999 categories had no significant differences in medication adherence. Compared with those with low copayments, individuals with high copayments had decreased adherence to prostanoids (odds ratio [OR], 0.36 [95% CI, 0.20-0.65]; P<0.001) and combination therapy with endothelin receptor antagonist and phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor (OR, 0.61 [95% CI, 0.38-0.97]; P=0.03). Conclusions We identified associations between copayment and adherence to prostanoids and combination therapy among individuals with PAH. Copayment may be a structural barrier to medication adherence and merits inclusion in studies examining access to pharmacotherapy among individuals with PAH.
Project description:RationaleObesity is associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), but its impact on outcomes such as health-related quality of life (HRQoL), hospitalizations and survival is not well understood.ObjectivesTo assess the effect of obesity on health-related quality of life (HRQoL), hospitalizations and survival in patients with PAH.MethodsWe performed a cohort study of adults with PAH from the Pulmonary Hypertension Association Registry, a prospective multicenter registry. Multivariate linear mixed effects regression was used to examine the relationship between weight categories and HRQoL using the Short Form-12 (SF-12) and emPHasis-10 (e10). We used multivariable negative binomial regression to estimate hospitalization incidence rate ratios (IRRs) and Cox regression to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for transplant-free survival by weight status.Results767 subjects were included: mean age of 57 years, 74% female, 33% overweight and 40% obese, with median follow-up duration of 527 days. Overweight and obese patients had higher baseline e10 scores (worse HRQoL), which persisted over time (p<0.001). The overweight and obese have a trend towards increased incidence of hospitalizations compared to normal weight (IRR 1.34, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) 0.94-1.92 and 1.33, 95%CI 0.93-1.89, respectively). Overweight and obese patients had lower risk of transplant or death as compared to normal weight patients (HR 0.45, 95%CI 0.25-0.80 and 0.39, 95%CI 0.22-0.70, respectively).ConclusionsIn a large multicenter, prospective cohort of PAH, overweight and obese patients had worse disease-specific HRQoL despite better transplant-free survival compared to normal weight patients. Future interventions should address the specific needs of these patients.
Project description:Rationale: Sex hormones play a role in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), but the menstrual cycle has never been studied.Objectives: We conducted a prospective observational study of eight women with stable PAH and 20 healthy controls over one cycle.Methods: Participants completed four study visits 1 week apart starting on the first day of menstruation. Relationships between sex hormones, hormone metabolites, and extracellular vesicle microRNA (miRNA) expression and clinical markers were compared with generalized linear mixed modeling.Results: Women with PAH had higher but less variable estradiol (E2) levels (P < 0.001) that tracked with 6-minute walk distance (P < 0.001), N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (P = 0.03) levels, and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (P < 0.01); the direction of these associations depended on menstrual phase. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) levels were lower in women with PAH (all visits, P < 0.001). In PAH, each 100-μg/dl increase in DHEA-S was associated with a 127-m increase in 6-minute walk distance (P < 0.001) and was moderated by the cardioprotective E2 metabolite 2-methoxyestrone (P < 0.001). As DHEA-S increased, N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide levels decreased (P = 0.001). Expression of extracellular vesicle miRNAs-21, -29c, and -376a was higher in PAH, moderated by E2 and DHEA-S levels, and tracked with hormone-associated changes in clinical measures.Conclusions: Women with PAH have fluctuations in cardiopulmonary function during menstruation driven by E2 and DHEA-S. These hormones in turn influence transcription of extracellular vesicle miRNAs implicated in the pathobiology of pulmonary vascular disease and cancer.
Project description:ObjectiveTo compare time to clinical worsening (TTCW) based on initial oral therapy for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc)-related PAH.MethodsUsing data from the Pulmonary Hypertension Assessment and Recognition of Outcomes in Scleroderma (PHAROS) registry (a multicenter prospective observational study enrolling SSc patients with incident pulmonary hypertension), we selected patients with group 1 PAH (World Health Organization Clinical Classification system) who received initial therapy (for 6 months) with an endothelin receptor antagonist (ERA), a phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, or a combination of these 2 agents (ERA/PDE5 inhibitor). The main outcome was TTCW, defined as the first occurrence of death, PAH-related hospitalization, lung transplantation, initiation of parenteral prostacyclin treatment, or worsening symptoms.ResultsNinety-eight patients (24 in the ERA group, 59 in the PDE5 inhibitor group, and 15 in the ERA/PDE5 inhibitor group) were included. No significant differences in the baseline characteristics of the patients were observed. TTCW was significantly worse in patients in the ERA group compared with those in the PDE5 inhibitor group or the ERA/PDE5 inhibitor group. Ten patients (41.6%) in the ERA group died during the 3-year observation period, compared with 4 patients (6.8%) in the PDE5 inhibitor group and 1 patient (6.7%) in the ERA/PDE5 inhibitor group. Baseline factors that were independently associated with a shorter TTCW were initial treatment with an ERA (hazard ratio [HR] 2.63 [P = 0.009]), lower diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (HR 0.69 per 10% of predicted change [P = 0.04]), and higher pulmonary vascular resistance (HR 1.10 per Wood unit change [P = 0.007]).ConclusionCompared with initial treatment with a PDE5 inhibitor or combination therapy with an ERA and a PDE5 inhibitor, initial therapy with an ERA in patients with SSc-related PAH was associated with significantly worse TTCW, even after adjustment for commonly accepted prognostic factors. Further study into the optimal initial oral therapy for patients with SSc-related PAH is needed.
Project description:Persistent latent reservoir in resting CD4+ T cells is a major obstacle in curing HIV-1 infection. Effective strategies for eradication of the HIV-1 reservoir are urgently needed. We report here for the first time that two BET inhibitors, RVX-208, which has entered phase II clinical trials for diverse cardiovascular disorders, and PFI-1, which has been widely studied in oncology, can reactivate HIV-1 from latency. RVX-208 and PFI-1 treatment alone or in combination with other latency reversing agents efficiently reactivated HIV-1 transcription through an up-regulation of P-TEFb by increasing CDK9 Thr-186 phosphorylation in latently infected Jurkat T cells in vitro. The two BET inhibitors also reactivated HIV-1 transcription in cART treated patient-derived resting CD4+ T cells ex vivo, without influence on global immune cell activation. Our findings, in combination with previous reports, further confirm that BET inhibitors are a group of leading compounds for combating HIV-1 latency for viral eradication.
Project description:Here, we tested the hypothesis that severe pulmonary arterial hypertension impairs retrograde perfusion. To test this hypothesis, pulmonary arterial hypertension was induced in Fischer rats using a single injection of Sugen 5416 followed by 3 wk of exposure to 10% hypoxia and then 2 wk of normoxia. This Sugen 5416 and hypoxia regimen caused severe pulmonary arterial hypertension, with a Fulton index of 0.73?±?0.07, reductions in both the pulmonary arterial acceleration time and pulmonary arterial acceleration to pulmonary arterial ejection times ratio, and extensive medial hypertrophy and occlusive neointimal lesions. Whereas the normotensive circulation accommodated large increases in forward and retrograde flow, the hypertensive circulation did not. During forward flow, pulmonary artery and double occlusion pressures rose sharply at low perfusion rates, resulting in hydrostatic edema. Pulmonary arterial hypertensive lungs possessed an absolute intolerance to retrograde perfusion, and they rapidly developed edema. Retrograde perfusion was not rescued by maximal vasodilation. Retrograde perfusion was preserved in lungs from animals treated with Sugen 5416 and hypoxia for 1 and 3 wk, in lungs from animals with a milder form of hypoxic hypertension, and in normotensive lungs subjected to high outflow pressures. Thus impaired retrograde perfusion coincides with development of severe pulmonary arterial hypertension, with advanced structural defects in the microcirculation.