Long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine dosed every 2 months in adults with HIV-1 infection (ATLAS-2M), 96-week results: a randomised, multicentre, open-label, phase 3b, non-inferiority study.

BACKGROUND: Long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine administered monthly or every 2 months might address the challenges associated with daily oral antiretroviral therapy. The ATLAS-2M week 48 results showed non-inferiority of long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine administered every 8 weeks compared with that of every 4 weeks. In this study, we report the efficacy, safety, and tolerability results from the week 96 analysis. METHODS: ATLAS-2M is a randomised, multicentre, open-label, phase 3b, non-inferiority trial conducted in 13 countries, evaluating the safety and efficacy of maintenance treatment with intramuscular injections of long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine, administered every 8 weeks versus every 4 weeks, to people living with HIV-1. Virologically suppressed adults with HIV-1, either already receiving intramuscular long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine every 4 weeks (ie, ATLAS study rollover participants) or oral standard of care, were randomly assigned (1:1), in an unblinded fashion, to receive either intramuscular long-acting cabotegravir (600 mg) and rilpivirine (900 mg) every 8 weeks (ie, the every 8-week dosing group) or intramuscular long-acting cabotegravir (400 mg) and rilpivirine (600 mg) every 4 weeks (ie, the every 4-week dosing group). Randomisation was generated using the GlaxoSmithKline-validated randomisation software RANDALL NG (version 1.3.3). The primary endpoint at week 48 was the proportion of participants with plasma HIV-1 RNA measurements of 50 copies per mL or more (ie, the US Food and Drug Administration [FDA] Snapshot algorithm), which has been published previously. Here, we present the week 96 results: the proportion of participants with plasma HIV-1 RNA measurements of less than 50 copies per mL (FDA Snapshot algorithm), with a non-inferiority margin of -10%; the proportion of participants with plasma HIV-1 RNA measurements of 50 copies per mL or more (FDA Snapshot algorithm), with a non-inferiority margin of 4%; the proportion of participants with protocol-defined confirmed virological failure (ie, two consecutive plasma HIV-1 RNA measurements ≥200 copies per mL); safety; pharmacokinetics; and tolerability. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT03299049, and is currently ongoing. FINDINGS: Between Oct 27, 2017, and May 31, 2018, a total of 1149 participants were screened; of whom, 1049 (91%) were randomly assigned and 1045 (91%) initiated treatment (522 in the every 8-week dosing group and 523 in the every 4-week dosing group). The median age was 42 years (IQR 34-50). 280 (27%) of 1045 participants were assigned female at birth and 764 (73%) were white. At week 96 (FDA Snapshot algorithm), 11 (2%) of 522 participants in the every 8-week dosing group and six (1%) of 523 in the every 4-week dosing group had an HIV-1 RNA measurement of 50 copies per mL or more, with an adjusted treatment difference of 1·0 (95% CI -0·6 to 2·5), meeting the prespecified non-inferiority threshold of 4%; 475 (91%) of 522 participants in the every 8-week dosing group and 472 (90%) of 523 in the every 4-week dosing group maintained an HIV-1 RNA measurement of less than 50 copies per mL, with an adjusted treatment difference of 0·8 (95% CI -2·8 to 4·3), which met the prespecified non-inferiority threshold of -10%. One participant in the every 8-week dosing group met the confirmed virological failure criterion since the week 48 analysis at week 88, resulting in a total of nine participants in the every 8-week dosing group and two in the every 4-week dosing group having confirmed virological failure. No new safety signals were identified, and no treatment-related deaths occurred. Injection site reactions were the most common adverse event, occurring in 412 (79%) of 522 participants in the every 8-week dosing group and 400 (76%) of 523 in the every 4-week dosing group. Most injection site reactions were grade 1 or 2 (7453 [99%] of 7557 in both groups), with a median duration of 3 days (IQR 2-5). INTERPRETATION: Long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine dosed every 8 weeks had non-inferior efficacy compared with that of every 4 weeks through the 96-week analysis, with both regimens maintaining high levels of virological suppression. These results show the durable safety, efficacy, and acceptability of dosing long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine monthly and every 2 months as maintenance therapy for people living with HIV-1. FUNDING: ViiV Healthcare and Janssen Research & Development.

Biological profiling of piperazinediones for the management of anxiety.

The anxiolytic effect of earlier reported piperazinediones was assessed by elevated plus maze (EPM), hole-board and open-field (OFT) tests. The rats were administered pretreatment of three different doses i.e. 2, 1 and 0.5 mg/kg of compounds 52, 53 and 55 for seven consecutive days. Compound 52 and diazepam showed increase in open arm entries, increase in time spent therein and total arm entries at 1 mg/kg dose. The compound also produced increase in the number of head dip, sniffing behavior and total number of squares crossed compared to diazepam. In OFT paradigm grooming behavior, number of central squares crossed and the time spent in central area did not reveal statistical differences for diazepam and compound 52 at 1 mg/kg dose. Flumazenil mediated antagonism experiments of these showed that they were acting through benzodiazepine site on GABAA receptor. The levels of 5HT and 5HIAA were estimated in amygdalar region. Level of 5HT was found to be equivalent in case of compound 52 and diazepam treatment at dose of 1 mg/kg. Interestingly, compound 52 did not display sedative effect at higher dose in both animal models. Thus, present study indicated that compound 52 produced anti-anxiety property through modulation of GABAergic transmission.

Single- and Multiple-Day Dosing Studies to Investigate High-Dose Pharmacokinetics of Epelsiban and Its Metabolite, GSK2395448, in Healthy Female Volunteers.

Open-label single- and double-blind repeat-dose studies in healthy female volunteers were conducted to investigate the pharmacokinetics (PK) and safety/tolerability of epelsiban total daily doses ranging from 600 to 900 mg. In 1 study (n = 12), epelsiban was dosed at 300 or 450 mg twice daily (every 12 hours) for a single day. In the repeat-dose double-blind study, epelsiban and placebo were administered to 31 subjects as 200 mg 3 times daily, 300 mg 3 times daily (TID), or 450 mg twice daily (BID) for 14 days. After both single and 14 daily repeat doses, the PK profiles for epelsiban and its metabolite, GSK2395448, remained linear at all administered doses. The exposures at a given total daily dose were also similar between BID and TID dosing regimens. Exposure (AUC0-τ ), based on dosing intervals, for both epelsiban and GSK2395448 was similar. However, compared with morning dosing, Cmax was lower after evening dosing, possibly because of a food effect. The highest accumulation of epelsiban and GSK2395448 exposures (AUC0-τ ) was approximately 34% for each after repeat dosing, consistent with the short half-life. At total daily doses of 600 and 900 mg, epelsiban was generally well tolerated, and there were no significant safety concerns identified.

A single- and multiple-dose study to investigate the pharmacokinetics of epelsiban and its metabolite, GSK2395448, in healthy female volunteers.

An open-label single- and repeat-dose study was conducted to investigate the pharmacokinetics, safety, and tolerability of ascending doses of epelsiban in healthy female volunteers (n = 48). The pharmacokinetics of the epelsiban metabolite, GSK2395448, were also assessed. Epelsiban was readily absorbed and parent and metabolite readily appeared in plasma. The parent drug's median tmax was approximately 0.5 hours, and the metabolite's median tmax ranged from 0.5 to 1.0 hours post-parent dosing. Both epelsiban and GSK2395448 had rapid elimination half-lives, ranging between 2.66 and 4.85 hours. The metabolite:parent ratios for exposure (AUC and Cmax ) ranged from approximately 70% to greater than 100%, and therefore, GSK2395448 is considered a major metabolite of epelsiban. Mean epelsiban and GSK2395448 AUC values increased in a dose-proportional manner following both single-dose administration from 10 to 200 mg and repeat administration from 10 to 150 mg following twice daily or 4-times-daily dosing. Single-dose epelsiban pharmacokinetics in women was similar to single-dose pharmacokinetics previously observed in men. Epelsiban was generally well tolerated, and no events of clinical concern were observed in volunteers dosed in this study. The safety findings were consistent with the previous study in men, with headache the most commonly reported adverse effect.

Safety and efficacy of epelsiban in the treatment of men with premature ejaculation: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, fixed-dose study.

AIM: To assess the efficacy and safety of the selective oxytocin receptor antagonist epelsiban in the treatment of premature ejaculation (PE). METHODS: Double-blind, randomized, parallel-group, placebo-controlled, stopwatch-monitored, phase 2, multicenter study (GSK557296; NCT01021553) conducted in men (N=77) 18-55 years of age, with PE defined as per International Society for Sexual Medicine consensus definition. Patients provided informed consent prior to a 4-week un-medicated run-in to determine baseline intravaginal ejaculatory latency times (IELT) recorded in an electronic diary. Patients needed to make a minimum of four intercourse attempts and have a mean IELT<65 seconds to be considered for randomization. Men with moderate-to-severe erectile dysfunction were excluded from the study. Eligible patients were randomized to placebo, epelsiban 50 mg, or 150 mg, taken 1 hour before sexual activity. Active treatment IELT times were recorded in an electronic diary, along with subjective measures of intercourse satisfaction, over an 8-week treatment period. The Modified Index of Premature Ejaculation and International Index of Erectile Function were completed at study visits. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Stopwatch timed IELT recordings and a modified version of the patient-reported outcome questionnaire the IPE were used in this study to determine the effect of epelsiban when taken orally prior to intercourse in subjects diagnosed with PE. RESULTS: The baseline (mean) IELT for patients pretreatment was (0.52, 0.63, and 0.59 minutes) for placebo, epelsiban 50 mg and 150 mg, respectively. On-treatment, average geometric least squares means of the median IELT values (mean) were slightly higher in the 50 mg and 150 mg groups (0.72 and 0.69 minutes), respectively, vs. the placebo group (0.62 minutes). Headache was the most common adverse event, and rates were similar across all groups. CONCLUSIONS: Epelsiban 50 mg and 150 mg were well tolerated, but did not result in a clinically or statistically significant change in IELT in men with PE, compared with placebo.

Phase 1 study of the novel vascular disrupting agent plinabulin (NPI-2358) and docetaxel.

BACKGROUND: Plinabulin (NPI-2358) is a vascular disrupting agent (VDA) that destabilizes tumor vascular endothelial cell architecture resulting in selective collapse of established tumor vasculature producing anti-tumor activity alone or in combination with cytotoxic agents. The objective of this study was to assess the recommended Phase 2 dose (RP2D) of plinabulin combined with docetaxel. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients received 75 mg/m(2) docetaxel on day 1 and plinabulin on days 1 and 8 intravenously in 21 day cycles. Plinabulin was escalated from the biologically effective dose (BED) of 13.5 mg/m(2) to the standard single agent dose of 30 mg/m(2) using a "3+3" design. RESULTS: Thirteen patients were enrolled. Adverse events were consistent with those of both agents alone. Fatigue, pain, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting were the most common events. One dose limiting toxicity of nausea, vomiting, dehydration and neutropenia occurred. The RP2D was 30 mg/m(2) of plinabulin with 75 mg/m(2) docetaxel. Pharmacokinetics did not indicate drug-drug interactions. Of the 8 patients with NSCLC evaluable for response, 2 achieved a partial response and 4 demonstrated lesser decreases in tumor measurements. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of full doses of plinabulin and docetaxel is tolerable. With encouraging antitumor activity, this supported further development of this combination.