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New Antibiotic Formulation Designed to Treat Parasitic and Anaerobic Bacterial Infections; Appili Will Use Study Data as Basis for NDA Filing
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, July 30, 2018 – Appili Therapeutics Inc. (the “Company” or “Appili”) announced today positive top-line results of a pivotal relative bioavailability study evaluating pharmacokinetics, safety, and palatability of ATI-1501 in healthy, normal adults. Data from this study will be used to file a New Drug Application (NDA) with the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for ATI-1501 in early 2019. ATI-1501 is a proprietary, taste-masked oral suspension formulation of the antibiotic metronidazole, which is broadly prescribed to treat parasitic and anaerobic bacterial infections that heavily burden the elderly.
The clinical study results announced today showed that a single 500 mg dose of ATI-1501 achieved equivalent systemic drug levels to a 500 mg metronidazole tablet under fasted and fed conditions. ATI-1501 was well tolerated and safety observations for ATI-1501 were consistent with the known safety profile of metronidazole.
“Appili Therapeutics set out to address an unmet medical need – namely to provide an alternative antibiotic solution for patients with difficulty swallowing. Our clinical data demonstrate that ATI-1501 has an acceptable safety profile while being more palatable than metronidazole tablets for a vulnerable patient population,” said Jamie Doran, MSc, DABT, ERT,Vice President of Drug Development for Appili. “As we move towards a submission to the FDA for market approval, we anticipate that ATI-1501 will soon be available to healthcare providers and caregivers as an excellent alternate treatment option for those with serious infections requiring treatment with metronidazole.”
In many countries, including the US and Canada, oral metronidazole is only available in solid forms. Patients with difficulty swallowing the oral tablet require pharmacists, the patients themselves or caregivers to crush the drug and add it to food prior to patients ingesting it. This process increases risk for dosing error and amplifies the pronounced bitter taste of metronidazole that can negatively impact patients’ ability to comply with their full treatment regimen. The bitter taste of metronidazole is so pronounced that it is listed as an adverse event on the drug label. ATI-1501 has been designed to offer patients with difficulty swallowing the drug a more palatable, easy-to-take liquid suspension alternative.
About the Bioavailability Study
The primary objective of the randomized, open-label, single-dose, two-sequence, cross-over clinical study was to assess the relative bioavailability of ATI-1501 compared to the reference product Flagyl® (solid metronidazole tablets) under fasted and fed conditions. Clinicians performed the study under an Investigational New Drug application (IND) and a Clinical Trial Application (CTA) approved, respectively, by the US Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada in 2017. A total of 44 healthy adults aged 18 to 63 years completed the study.
A planned subset of participants was also asked to evaluate the taste properties and relative preference for ATI-1501 compared to metronidazole crushed in applesauce, which is the current standard of care for elderly and pediatric patients with difficulty swallowing. Palatability measures were assessed using the 9-point hedonic scale, the most widely recognized and used scale to measure taste preference and selection in the food industry. A total of 25 participants participated in this palatability and preference component, ranging from 18 to 63 years of age. ATI-1501 exhibited meaningful and statistically significant improvements across all palatability measures (taste, bitterness, smell, texture) compared to crushed tablets with a corresponding reduction in bitterness scores and a strong preference for ATI-1501 over the current standard of care.
Based on these findings, Appili expects to submit complete study results for publication in a peer-reviewed medical journal.
“We are currently pursuing commercial manufacturing activities to support an NDA filing in the first quarter of 2019,” said Appili CEO Kevin Sullivan, MBA. “In addition, we are actively engaged in commercialization and licensing activities to maximize patient access to ATI-1501 in US and global markets.”
About Appili Therapeutics
Appili Therapeutics, Inc., was founded to advance the global fight against infectious disease by matching clearly defined patient needs with drug development programs that provide solutions to existing challenges patients, doctors and society face in this challenging disease space. Balancing near-to-market product candidates with higher-risk but potentially transformative early-stage programs, Appili’s growing pipeline includes assets being developed by Appili as well as an active licensing program. ATI-1501 employs Appili’s proprietary, taste-masked, oral-suspension technology with metronidazole for the growing number of pediatric and elderly patients with difficulty swallowing. ATI-1503 is a drug discovery program aimed at generating negamycin analogue candidates, a novel class of antibiotics with broad-spectrum activity against Gram-negative bacteria. Via an in-licensing program, Appili acquired the rights to ATI-1701, a vaccine for tularemia, removing risk from a weaponized bioterrorism pathogen. Headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with offices in Mississauga, Ontario, Appili is pursuing worldwide opportunities in collaboration with science and industry commercial partners, governments and government agencies. For more information, visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com.
