New anti-VEGF shows promise as combination therapy 

Opthea Limited presented positive data from an ongoing phase 1 clinical trial investigating the safety and tolerability of OPT-302, a new anti-VEGF that blocks the activity of 2 angiogenesis growth factor proteins not targeted by current anti-VEGF therapies.

The results, presented last week at the European Society of Retina Specialists Congress, suggest that OPT-302 combined with and ranibizumab may lead to better outcomes than ranibizumab alone by targeting multiple pathways concurrently. OPT-302 inhibits VEGF-C and VEGF-D, while ranibizumab and bevacizumab inhibit VEGF-A. OPT-302 was also well-tolerated in wet AMD patients when administered as both a monotherapy or in combination with ranibizumab. 

Opthea is actively recruiting patients for a U.S. IND study focused on the safety, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the novel biologic when administered as a monthly intravitreal injection both with and without ranibizumab. Phase 1 is an open label, sequential dose escalation that previously enrolled 20 patients. Phase 2a is a forthcoming dose escalation arm that will be conducted in approximately 30 new patients.