WALTHAM, Mass.– Upstream Bio, a clinical-stage biotech company advancing new therapies to treat inflammation, today announced the initiation of a Phase 1b multiple ascending dose study of UPB-101 in asthma patients and successful dosing of the first patient. UPB-101 is a monoclonal antibody designed to block the thymic stromal lymphopoietin receptor (TLSPR) and thus inhibit TSLP-driven inflammation. TSLP is a cytokine and a key driver of inflammatory response in asthma and other allergic and inflammatory diseases.
“The Upstream team is excited to bring UPB-101 to asthma study participants. Our goals with this study are to further explore the impact of UPB-101 on relevant pharmacodynamic measures, and to inform the dose regimen selection for Phase 2 investigation,” said Aaron Deykin, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research and Development. “TSLP receptor blockade is a novel approach to inhibiting TSLP-induced activation of multiple downstream pathways in asthma and is anticipated to have broad utility across many inflammatory phenotypes of patients. It is an emerging class of biologics for patients with moderate to severe asthma who, despite treatment with standard inhaled medications, still experience ongoing exacerbations and debilitating, sometimes life-threatening symptoms.”
The Phase 1b study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multiple ascending dose study. The completion of the study is expected in 2023. The study is designed to further characterize UPB-101 based on a previous Phase 1 single ascending dose study of healthy volunteers completed by Astellas Pharma. In the single ascending dose study, UPB-101 demonstrated a promising profile on safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics measures. In pre-clinical studies, UPB-101 demonstrated inhibition of cytokine production from both CD4+ T cells and ILC2, and completely suppressed skin allergic reactions in a non-human primate model, suggesting that it may be effective against multiple types of inflammation.
“Advancing UPB-101 to a multiple ascending dose trial in asthma patients marks a key milestone for our team. We anticipate that UPB-101’s unique mechanism targeting the TSLP receptor upstream of the inflammatory cascade has the potential to benefit patients living with uncontrolled asthma and other inflammatory indications,” said Sam Truex, Chief Executive Officer.
