Post by icemandios on Sept 4, 2020 13:43:06 GMT
Ascendis Pharma A/S Announces U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Accepts Biologics License Application (BLA) for TransCon™ hGH for Pediatric Growth Hormone Deficiency (GHD)
– FDA indicated that it is currently not planning to hold an Advisory Committee Meeting –
COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Sept. 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ascendis Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ASND), a biopharmaceutical company that uses its novel TransCon technologies to address unmet medical needs, today announced that the FDA has accepted the company’s BLA for TransCon hGH (lonapegsomatropin), an investigational long-acting prodrug of somatropin (human growth hormone or hGH) for the treatment for pediatric GHD. A PDUFA date is set for June 25, 2021. The FDA also has indicated that it is currently not planning to hold an Advisory Committee Meeting to discuss the application at this time.
TransCon hGH is designed to release somatropin with the same mode of action and distribution as once-daily somatropin products, but with a once-weekly injection.1 The BLA for pediatric GHD is supported by the results a clinical development program that included eight clinical trials evaluating safety and efficacy in more than 400 subjects with GHD.
TransCon hGH is an investigational therapy that is not approved for use in any country. There is no long-acting growth hormone treatment approved by the FDA for the treatment of pediatric GHD. TransCon hGH has received orphan designation in both the U.S. and Europe as a treatment for GHD. The company plans to submit a Marketing Authorisation Application for TransCon hGH in pediatric GHD to the European Medicines Agency in the third quarter of 2020.
Pediatric GHD is a serious orphan disease caused when the pituitary gland does not produce enough growth hormone. Children with GHD are not only characterized by short stature, but they also may experience metabolic abnormalities, psychosocial challenges and poor quality of life. For decades, the standard of care for GHD has been a daily subcutaneous injection of hGH, which improves growth and overall endocrine health.
TransCon refers to “transient conjugation.” The proprietary TransCon platform is an innovative technology designed to create new therapies that optimize therapeutic effect, including efficacy, safety and dosing frequency. TransCon molecules have three components: an unmodified parent drug, an inert carrier that protects it, and a linker that temporarily binds the two. When bound, the carrier inactivates and shields the parent drug from clearance. When injected into the body, physiologic conditions (e.g., pH and temperature) initiate the release of the active, unmodified parent drug in a predictable manner. Because the parent drug is unmodified, its original mode of action may be maintained. TransCon technology is designed to be applied broadly to a protein, peptide or small molecule in multiple therapeutic areas, and to be used systemically or locally.
Ascendis Pharma is applying its innovative platform technology to build a leading, fully integrated biopharma company focused on making a meaningful difference in patients’ lives. Guided by its core values of patients, science and passion, the company utilizes its TransCon™ technologies to create new and potentially best-in-class therapies.
Ascendis is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, with additional offices in Heidelberg and Berlin, Germany, and in Palo Alto and Redwood City, California.
