Latest news with #Lepodisiran
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New drug cuts down genetically inherited heart disease risk factor
(NewsNation) — An experimental drug has shown success in lowering the risk of genetically inherited heart disease by 94 percent during the second phase of its trial. Lepodisiran, an experimental drug from the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, is a small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapy designed to lower the production of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a genetically inherited risk factor for heart disease, according to a press release Sunday. 'Nearly a quarter of the world's population has elevated levels of Lp(a), putting them at a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes,' said Steven Nissen, chief academic officer of the Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. 'Unfortunately, there are no approved cholesterol-lowering therapies specifically for this genetic risk factor, and lifestyle changes like diet and exercise do not provide meaningful reductions,' Nissan added. But, he continued, 'these significant and sustained Lp(a) reductions are encouraging and suggest that siRNA approaches like lepodisiran could potentially offer durable benefits with long-term dosing.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New drug cuts down genetically inherited heart disease risk factor
(NewsNation) — An experimental drug has shown success in lowering the risk of genetically inherited heart disease by 94 percent during the second phase of its trial. Lepodisiran, an experimental drug from the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, is a small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapy designed to lower the production of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a genetically inherited risk factor for heart disease, according to a press release Sunday. 'Nearly a quarter of the world's population has elevated levels of Lp(a), putting them at a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes,' said Steven Nissen, chief academic officer of the Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. 'Unfortunately, there are no approved cholesterol-lowering therapies specifically for this genetic risk factor, and lifestyle changes like diet and exercise do not provide meaningful reductions,' Nissan added. But, he continued, 'these significant and sustained Lp(a) reductions are encouraging and suggest that siRNA approaches like lepodisiran could potentially offer durable benefits with long-term dosing.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
01-04-2025
- Health
- The Hill
New drug cuts down genetically inherited heart disease risk factor
(NewsNation) — An experimental drug has shown success in lowering the risk of genetically inherited heart disease by 94 percent during the second phase of its trial. Lepodisiran, an experimental drug from the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, is a small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapy designed to lower the production of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a genetically inherited risk factor for heart disease, according to a press release Sunday. 'Nearly a quarter of the world's population has elevated levels of Lp(a), putting them at a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes,' said Steven Nissen, chief academic officer of the Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic. 'Unfortunately, there are no approved cholesterol-lowering therapies specifically for this genetic risk factor, and lifestyle changes like diet and exercise do not provide meaningful reductions,' Nissan added. But, he continued, 'these significant and sustained Lp(a) reductions are encouraging and suggest that siRNA approaches like lepodisiran could potentially offer durable benefits with long-term dosing.'
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Lilly study data reinforce potential of new kind of heart drug
This story was originally published on BioPharma Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily BioPharma Dive newsletter. An RNA drug developed by Eli Lilly sharply reduced blood levels of a protein particle that scientists and drugmakers increasingly see as important to assessing heart disease risk, alongside cholesterol and triglycerides. Treatment with a high dose of Lilly's drug, called lepodisiran, reduced levels of this particle, lipoprotein(a), by about 94% over a four-month period. People enrolled in the company's Phase 2 study who received one of two lower lepodisiran doses also had reduced lipoprotein(a) levels, but the declines weren't as large. Around 14% of study participants given the high lepodisiran dose experienced 'treatment-emergent' adverse events, but none were serious or led them to drop out of the trial, Lilly said. One patient on a lower dose died as a result of complications from chronic coronary disease. LDL cholesterol and triglycerides are well known for their link to elevated cardiovascular risk. So too are the treatments, like statins, that can be used to tamp down high levels of either lipid. While genetic and epidemiological studies have shown a similar link between lipoprotein(a) and heart disease, there are no treatments available that can reduce levels of the protein particle, which seem tied to genetics. Pharmaceutical companies like Lilly aim to fill the gap. Lepodisiran works by what's known as RNA interference, a biologic process drugmakers have harnessed to 'silence' the expression of certain genes. These therapies degrade the transitional nucleic acid cells use to construct apolipoprotein(a), an essential building block for Lp(a) particles. Novartis and Amgen previously showed drugs that work this way can dramatically reduce Lp(a) levels. Both companies, as well as Lilly, are now running large Phase 3 trials designed to prove that Lp(a)-lowering translates to a cardioprotective benefit. How well they do remains an open question. 'How much lipoprotein(a) reduction is necessary to produce clinical benefits remains uncertain and has been debated,' wrote the authors of a paper publishing Lilly's results in The New England Journal of Medicine on Sunday. The data were also presented at the American College of Cardiology's annual conference. Novartis will likely be first to provide an answer. The company had expected a readout of data from its late-stage study this year, but now anticipates results will be available in 2026. Amgen could also have data from its trial in 2026, but likely later in the year. If these studies are successful, Lp(a)-lowering therapies could become a third pillar for managing heart disease risk in the 20% or so of Americans who are estimated to have elevated levels of the protein. In addition to lepodisiran, Lilly is advancing an oral drug called muvalaplin that targets Lp(a) and is exploring gene editing approaches to treatment with Verve Therapeutics. Merck & Co., meanwhile, recently paid $200 million to China-based Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceutical to license a competing oral medicine. Recommended Reading Merck bets $200M on a new type of heart pill
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
One dose of experimental drug nearly wipes out stealthy cholesterol in 'remarkable' trial
A single dose of an experimental drug dramatically reduced levels of a deadly form of cholesterol, often thought to be untreatable, for up to one year. Lipoprotein(a) is a type of cholesterol that lurks in the body, undetected by routine tests and undeterred by existing drugs, diet or exercise. The findings, cardiologists say, are a critical step toward treating the millions of Americans genetically predisposed to abnormally high levels of lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a). 'It's remarkable,' said Dr. Eric Brandt, director of preventive cardiology at the University of Michigan Health Frankel Cardiovascular Center in Ann Arbor, who wasn't involved with the new research. 'These drugs have the potential to nearly eliminate that lipoprotein.' People with high levels of Lp(a) — some 64 million adults in the U.S. — are at extremely high risk of cholesterol buildup in their arteries. That buildup raises their odds of heart attack, stroke and early death from cardiovascular problems. Findings from an earlier trial of the Eli Lilly drug, called lepodisiran, showed the drug was safe. The latest study, a Phase 2 clinical trial funded by Lilly, included 320 people. One injection, researchers found, cut Lp(a) levels by 93.9% after six months. After a year, the effects waned, but only slightly, with levels measured at 88.5% lower than the baseline. People in the trial who got a second dose at six months had a 94.8% reduction at the one-year mark. 'This is a major source of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality,' said Dr. Steven Nissen, chief academic officer of the Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic and lead researcher of the lepodisiran trial. 'We have never been able to treat lipoprotein(a) until now,' he said. Lepodisiran works by targeting the mRNA, or messenger RNA, that tells the body to make Lp(a). Messenger RNA carries instructions to proteins in the body to produce certain substances, in this case, Lp(a). The drug works by essentially shooting the messenger. Nissen's findings were presented Sunday at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology in Chicago and published in The New England Journal of Medicine. Lipoprotein(a) is dangerous in three ways: It sticks to LDL (the 'bad' cholesterol), making it more likely to clog arteries; it's particularly good at causing inflammation; and it tends to lead to blood clots. Routine blood cholesterol tests could look for Lp(a) but do not — largely because there's never been an effective treatment for it. A diagnosis of high Lp(a) was a shock to Donald Kosec, 61, of Stow, Ohio. Kosec said he never had any of the typical risk factors for heart disease: He exercised regularly, kept a healthy weight, and checkups with the doctor showed normal cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Eight years ago, when he was 53, Kosec went to his doctor after feeling a little short of breath. It was only then that he learned all of the major arteries pumping blood to and from his heart were blocked. Elevated Lp(a) was the culprit. Within three weeks, he was having quintuple bypass surgery. 'Going from not having the care in the world to all of a sudden facing your own death, your own mortality,' Kosec said. 'It caught me off guard, big time.' He entered a clinical trial for a treatment similar to lepodisiran, from drugmaker Amgen. Early results showed that drug, called olpasiran, drove down Lp(a) by at least 95% within nine months. It turns out, however, that Kosec got the placebo in the trial — not the real deal. He doesn't know whether his Lp(a) remains elevated. Without further treatment, it likely is. All he can do now is wait for one of these promising Lp(a) therapies to become available. 'Right now, I'm watching my weight, exercising and doing all of that stuff, and so far so good,' Kosec said. 'I'll be much happier when I can get on a drug that actually improves that.' This article was originally published on
