CRISPR Therapeutics and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated have announced positive, interim data from the first two patients with severe hemoglobinopathies treated with the investigational CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing therapy CTX001 in ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trials. One patient with transfusion-dependent beta thalassemia (TDT) received CTX001 in the first quarter of 2019 and data for this patient reflect nine months of safety and efficacy follow-up. One patient with severe sickle cell disease (SCD) received CTX001 in mid-2019 and data for this patient reflect four months of safety and efficacy follow-up. These studies are ongoing and patients will be followed for approximately two years following infusion. Several additional patients have been enrolled and have had drug product manufactured across the two studies.
Founded in 2013, CRISPR Therapeutics is a leading gene editing company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for serious diseases using its proprietary CRISPR/Cas9 platform. CRISPR/Cas9 is a revolutionary gene editing technology that allows for precise, directed changes to genomic DNA. CRISPR Therapeutics AG is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, with its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, CRISPR Therapeutics, Inc., and R&D operations based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and business offices in London, United Kingdom.
Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Vertex’s global headquarters is now located in Boston’s Innovation District and its international headquarters is in London, UK. Additionally, the company has research and development sites and commercial offices in North America, Europe, Australia and Latin America. Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation to create transformative medicines for people with serious diseases.
- Two patients treated with CTX001 successfully engrafted and demonstrated an initial safety profile consistent with myeloablative busulfan conditioning and autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant
- Beta thalassemia: Patient is transfusion independent with total hemoglobin level of 11.9 g/dL and 10.1 g/dL fetal hemoglobin at nine months after CTX001 infusion
- Sickle cell disease: Patient is free of vaso-occlusive crises with total hemoglobin level of 11.3 g/dL and 46.6% fetal hemoglobin at four months after CTX001 infusion
“We are very encouraged by these preliminary data, the first such data to be reported for patients with beta thalassemia and sickle cell disease treated with our CRISPR/Cas9 edited autologous hematopoietic stem cell candidate, CTX001.” … “These data support our belief in the potential of our therapies to have meaningful benefit for patients following a one-time intervention. We continue to enroll these studies as we drive forward to develop CRISPR/Cas9 therapies as a new class of transformative medicines to treat serious diseases.” – Samarth Kulkarni, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, CRISPR Therapeutics
“The data we announced today are remarkable and demonstrate that CTX001 has the potential to be a curative CRISPR/Cas9-based gene-editing therapy for people with sickle cell disease and beta thalassemia.” … “While the data are exciting, we are still in the early phase of this clinical program. We look forward to continuing to work with physicians, patients, caregivers and families over the coming months and years to bring forward the best possible therapy for these two serious diseases and to continue to accelerate our gene-editing programs for other serious diseases such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and myotonic dystrophy type 1.” – Jeffrey Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Vertex
Sources
- http://www.crisprtx.com/about-us/press-releases-and-presentations/crispr-therapeutics-and-vertex-announce-positive-safety-and-efficacy-data-from-first-two-patients-treated-with-investigational-crispr-cas9-gene-editing-therapy-ctx001-for-severe-hemoglobinopathies
- https://www.linkedin.com/company/crispr-therapeutics/about/
