What’s New

The Kadmon Corporation’s Phase 2 oral drug, KD025, a potent, bio-available and highly selective inhibitor of ROCK2 (Rho-associated coiled-coiled kinase 2) that can be taken orally was designed as one of its priority candidates to treat lupus through the LRxL-STAT Lupus Drug Repositioning Initiative. The selection of the drug was presented at the annual American College of Rheumatology meeting in November by Amrie Grammer, Ph.D., and Peter Lipsky, M.D.

The LRxL-STAT Lupus Drug Repositioning Initiative is a joint effort of the Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR) and the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) to accelerate the identification of new treatments with high potential for treating lupus. In collaboration with AMPEL BioSolutions, 157 potential therapies were evaluated and ranked through the CoLT, or Combined Lupus Treatment, scoring system, including KD025.

Read full press release…

Virginia researchers and founders of AMPEL BioSolutions, Drs. Amrie Grammer and Peter Lipsky delivered the results of a year-long Lupus Drug Repositioning Initiative this week in Boston. The Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR), the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) and AMPEL gathered with scientists at a key meeting of the American College of Rheumatology to launch the Lupus Clinical Investigators Network (LuCIN) of the LRxL-STAT Lupus Drug Repositioning Initiative.

Read full press release…

Boston, MA — The Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR) and the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) launched the Lupus Clinical Investigators Network (LuCIN) that will conduct clinical trials as part of the drug repositioning program LRxL-STAT at the American College of Rheumatology meeting. Commissioned by the ALR and LRI, and conducted in partnership with AMPEL Biosolutions, LRxL-STAT has identified and now will begin testing potential new treatments for lupus from among those approved for other human conditions.

The five highest priority candidates announced are: the small molecule quinacrine, autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, the complementary and alternative krill oil treatment, and Janssen’s biologic ustekinumab. An experimental treatment in development by Kadmon is also being considered for testing. LuCIN is comprised of over 50 academic lupus centers representing all geographic regions of the U.S.

Read full press release…

July 23 is a big day for Lupus patients – a new target for treatment has been identified. International attention was placed on the disease today in two articles. “Drugs for Treating Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Global Markets” emphasized the growing number of Lupus patients year-by-year, and an article co-authored by AMPEL co-founder Dr. Peter Lipsky unveiled a novel pathway that could be targeted by drugs in development by pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Dr. Lipsky coordinated the scientific study published today in Science Translational Medicine, between his Charlottesville office and Peking Union Medical Center University in Beijing. Dr. Lipsky’s article was highlighted on the cover of the July 23 edition with a photograph of a growling wolf, a long-time symbol of this terrible disease.

Read full press release…

The Alliance for Lupus Research (ALR) and the Lupus Research Institute (LRI) are excited to report rapid progress on the cooperative project we launched just months ago to fast-track scientific analysis and identification of potential new treatments for lupus. The lupus community participates with comments, ideas and input on the program’s dedicated LinkedIn site, LRxL STAT.

The proactive initiative focuses on identifying new treatments from among those that are approved for other conditions. We are encouraged that progress has been even more rapid and comprehensive than anticipated with 155 potential therapies analyzed and identified from an initial analysis of 6,800 therapies approved for human use. A prestigious expert committee will soon review these results and prioritize the best candidates for clinical trials in lupus.

Read full press release…