Servier cleared for UCART development in the USA
March 9, 2017Servier has been cleared with Investiga New Drug (IND) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the clinical development of U.S. UCART19, an allogeneic, gene-edited cellular therapy candidate to treat relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
In 2015, Servier acquired exclusive rights from Cellectis for UCART19, which is being co-developed by Servier and Pfizer.
Servier is sponsoring the CALM Phase 1 study on UCART19. The CALM study was initiated in the UK in August 2016. CALM is an open label, dose-escalation study designed to evaluate safety, tolerability and antileukemic activity of UCART19 in patients with relapsed or refractory CD19-positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), said the company.
The company also said that allogeneic UCART19 candidate and CALM protocol were reviewed at the National Institutes of Health’s Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee (RAC) meeting on December 14, 2016. Servier submitted an IND application on February 1, 2017, with Pfizer’s support. With this IND clearance, the CALM study will be expanded to include several centers in the U.S., including the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston (Texas).
“We are very pleased that Servier’s first IND approval has been granted for such an innovative approach as allogeneic CAR T therapy”, said Dr Patrick Thérasse, Director of Clinical Development Oncology at Servier. “B-ALL is a devastating disease and this study is key to gaining greater insight into the efficacy and safety profile of this new immune-oncology approach in patients with B-ALL.”
