Elbasvir-Grazoprevir to Treat Hepatitis C Virus Infection in Persons Receiving Opioid Agonist Therapy: A Randomized Trial.

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is common in persons who inject drugs (PWID). Objective: To evaluate elbasvir-grazoprevir in treating HCV infection in PWID. Design: Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02105688). Setting: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Patients: 301 treatment-naive patients with chronic HCV genotype 1, 4, or 6 infection who were at least 80% adherent to visits for opioid agonist therapy (OAT). Intervention: The immediate-treatment group (ITG) received elbasvir-grazoprevir for 12 weeks; the deferred-treatment group (DTG) received placebo for 12 weeks, no treatment for 4 weeks, then open-label elbasvir-grazoprevir for 12 weeks. Measurements: The primary outcome was sustained virologic response at 12 weeks (SVR12), evaluated separately in the ITG and DTG. Other outcomes included SVR24, viral recurrence or reinfection, and adverse events. Results: The SVR12 was 91.5% (95% CI, 86.8% to 95.0%) in the ITG and 89.5% (95% CI, 81.5% to 94.8%) in the active phase of the DTG. Drug use at baseline and during treatment did not affect SVR12 or adherence to HCV therapy. Among 18 patients with posttreatment viral recurrence through 24-week follow-up, 6 had probable reinfection. If the probable reinfections were assumed to be responses, SVR12 was 94.0% (CI, 89.8% to 96.9%) in the ITG. One patient in the ITG (1 of 201) and 1 in the placebo-phase DTG (1 of 100) discontinued treatment because of an adverse event. Limitation: These findings may not be generalizable to PWID who are not receiving OAT, nor do they apply to persons with genotype 3 infection, a common strain in PWID. Conclusion: Patients with HCV infection who were receiving OAT and treated with elbasvir-grazoprevir had high rates of SVR12, regardless of ongoing drug use. These results support the removal of drug use as a barrier to interferon-free HCV treatment for patients receiving OAT. Primary Funding Source: Merck & Co.

The acyclic CB1R inverse agonist taranabant mediates weight loss by increasing energy expenditure and decreasing caloric intake.

Cannabinoid 1 receptor (CB1R) inverse agonists are emerging as a potential obesity therapy. However, the physiological mechanisms by which these agents modulate human energy balance are incompletely elucidated. Here, we describe a comprehensive clinical research study of taranabant, a structurally novel acyclic CB1R inverse agonist. Positron emission tomography imaging using the selective CB1R tracer [(18)F]MK-9470 confirmed central nervous system receptor occupancy levels ( approximately 10%-40%) associated with energy balance/weight-loss effects in animals. In a 12-week weight-loss study, taranabant induced statistically significant weight loss compared to placebo in obese subjects over the entire range of evaluated doses (0.5, 2, 4, and 6 mg once per day) (p < 0.001). Taranabant treatment was associated with dose-related increased incidence of clinical adverse events, including mild to moderate gastrointestinal and psychiatric effects. Mechanism-of-action studies suggest that engagement of the CB1R by taranabant leads to weight loss by reducing food intake and increasing energy expenditure and fat oxidation.

Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Effects of Multiple-dose Administration of Omarigliptin, a Once-weekly Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4 Inhibitor, in Obese Participants With and Without Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

PURPOSE: Omarigliptin (MK-3102) is a potent, oral, long-acting dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP)-4 inhibitor approved in Japan and in global development as a once-weekly treatment for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of this study was to investigate the pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) effects of omarigliptin in obese participants with and without T2DM. METHODS: This was a Phase I, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multiple-dose study of 50-mg omarigliptin administered once weekly for 4 weeks. Participants included 24 obese but otherwise healthy subjects (panel A; omarigliptin, n = 18; placebo, n = 6) and 8 obese patients with T2DM (treatment naive, hemoglobin A1c ≥ 6.5% and ≤ 10.0% [panel B]; omarigliptin, n = 6; placebo, n = 2). Participants were 45 to 65 years of age with a body mass index of ≥ 30 and ≤ 40 kg/m(2). Blood sampling occurred at select time points, depending on the study panel, to evaluate the PK properties of omarigliptin, DPP-4 activity, active glucagon-like peptide 1 levels, and plasma glucose concentrations. Body weight was an exploratory end point. Due to sparse sampling in panel A, a thorough PK analysis was performed in obese patients with T2DM (panel B) only. PD analyses were performed in the overall study population (pooled panels A and B). FINDINGS: PK profiles in obese participants with and without T2DM were similar to those observed in nonobese reference subjects (historical data). Steady state was achieved after 1 or 2 weekly doses in obese participants with and without T2DM. In obese patients with T2DM, omarigliptin was rapidly absorbed, with a median Tmax of 1 to 2.5 hours (days 1 and 22). Compared with those in reference subjects, the geometric mean ratios (95% CI) (Obese T2DM/reference) for steady-state plasma AUC0-168h, Cmax, and C168h were 0.80 (0.65-0.98), 0.86 (0.53-1.41), and 1.08 (0.88-1.33), respectively. Trough DPP-4 activity was inhibited by ~90%; postprandial (PP) 4-hour weighted mean active GLP-1 concentrations were increased ~2-fold; and PP glucose was significantly reduced with omarigliptin versus placebo in the pooled population. Omarigliptin was generally well-tolerated in the pooled population, and there were no hypoglycemic events. Consistent with other DPP-4 inhibitors, omarigliptin had no effect on body weight in this short-duration study. IMPLICATIONS: The administration of omarigliptin was generally well-tolerated in obese participants with and without T2DM, and the favorable PK and PD profiles support once-weekly dosing. Omarigliptin may provide an important once-weekly treatment option for patients with T2DM. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01088711.

A pharmacokinetic comparison of adult and paediatric formulations of raltegravir in healthy adults.

BACKGROUND: Raltegravir is an HIV-1 integrase inhibitor approved for use in adults, children and infants ≥4 weeks of age. As alternatives to the original film-coated tablet, a chewable ethylcellulose (EC) tablet and oral granules for suspension (GFS) have been developed for use in children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate these formulations in adults prior to use in paediatric studies. METHODS: This open-label, 4-period, randomized, crossover study investigated the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of raltegravir paediatric formulations and the effect of a high-fat meal on EC tablet pharmacokinetics in healthy adults. In a balanced, crossover design (with a 4-day washout between treatments), 12 subjects received one 400 mg film-coated tablet (fasted), four 100 mg EC tablets (fasted), one 400 mg GFS dose (fasted) and four 100 mg EC tablets (after a high-fat meal). RESULTS: AUC0-∞ and Cmax were 2.6-fold and 4.6-fold higher for GFS and 1.8-fold and 3.2-fold higher for EC versus film-coated tablets. The geometric mean C12h values for the GFS formulation (162 nM) and the EC tablet (134 nM) were similar to that of the film-coated tablet (149 nM). Administration with a high-fat meal increased C12h, decreased Cmax and delayed Tmax for the EC tablet, but did not affect AUC0-∞. There were no serious adverse events (AEs) and no discontinuations due to drug-related clinical or laboratory AEs. CONCLUSIONS: Both paediatric formulations demonstrate moderately higher AUC0-∞ and Cmax, and similar C12h compared with the film-coated tablet. These data support the use of raltegravir GFS and EC formulations in paediatric studies.