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In patients with asthma who had elevated blood eosinophil levels and marginal asthma control despite treatment with high-dose inhaled or oral glucocorticoids, asthma exacerbations were reduced in those receiving a monoclonal antibody that binds to and inactivates interleukin-5. Severe asthma affects less than 10% of patients with asthma and is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality and a large fraction of the health care costs among patients with asthma. 1 – 3 Despite available care, recurrent asthma exacerbations are a major issue in a subgroup of patients with eosinophilic airway inflammation. 4 – 6 Mepolizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody against interleukin-5, selectively inhibits eosinophilic inflammation 7 , 8 and reduces the number of eosinophils in both sputum and blood, resulting in a reduction in exacerbations and in the need for treatment with systemic glucocorticoids. 7 – 12 In the Dose Ranging Efficacy and Safety with Mepolizumab . . .

Clinical control is difficult to achieve in obese patients with asthma. Bariatric surgery has been recommended for weight loss and to improve asthma control; however, the benefits of nonsurgical interventions have been poorly investigated. To examine the effect of exercise training in a weight-loss program on asthma control, quality of life, inflammatory biomarkers, and lung function. Fifty-five obese patients with asthma were randomly assigned to either a weight-loss program plus exercise (WL + E group, n = 28) or a weight-loss program plus sham (WL + S group, n = 27), where the weight-loss program included nutrition (caloric restriction) and psychological therapies. The WL + E group incorporated aerobic and resistance muscle training, whereas the WL + S group incorporated breathing and stretching exercises. The primary outcome was clinical improvement in asthma control over 3 months. Secondary outcomes included quality of life, lung function, body composition, aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and inflammatory/antiinflammatory biomarkers. After 3 months, 51 patients were analyzed. Compared with the WL + S group, the WL + E group demonstrated improved clinical control scores (median [25th to 75th percentile], -0.7 [-1.3 to -0.3] vs. -0.3 [-0.9 to 0.4]; P = 0.01) and greater weight loss (mean ± SD, -6.8% ± 3.5 vs. -3.1% ± 2.6; P < 0.001) and aerobic capacity (median [25th to 75th percentile], 3.0 [2.4 to 4.0] vs. 0.9 [-0.3 to 1.3] ml O  × kg  × min ; P < 0.001). These improvements in the WL + E group were also accompanied by improvements in lung function, antiinflammatory biomarkers, and vitamin D levels, as well as reductions in airway and systemic inflammation. Adding exercise to a short-term weight-loss program should be considered as a useful strategy for achieving clinical control of asthma in obese patients. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT 02188940).

IntroductionIn a subset of patients with asthma, standard-of-care treatment does not achieve disease control, highlighting the need for novel therapeutic approaches. Lebrikizumab is a humanised, monoclonal antibody that binds to and blocks interleukin-13 activity.MethodsLUTE and VERSE were replicate, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, evaluating multiple doses of lebrikizumab in patients with uncontrolled asthma despite the use of medium-to-high-dose inhaled corticosteroid and a second controller. Patients received lebrikizumab 37.5, 125, 250 mg or placebo subcutaneously every four weeks. The primary endpoint was the rate of asthma exacerbations during the placebo-controlled period. Analyses were performed on prespecified subgroups based on baseline serum periostin levels. Following the discovery of a host-cell impurity in the study drug material, protocols were amended to convert from phase III to phase IIb. Subsequently, dosing of study medication was discontinued early as a precautionary measure. The data collected for analysis were from a placebo-controlled period of variable duration and pooled across both studies.ResultsThe median duration of treatment was approximately 24 weeks. Treatment with lebrikizumab reduced the rate of asthma exacerbations, which was more pronounced in the periostin-high patients (all doses: 60% reduction) than in the periostin-low patients (all doses: 5% reduction); no dose–response was evident. Lung function also improved following lebrikizumab treatment, with greatest increase in FEV1 in periostin-high patients (all doses: 9.1% placebo-adjusted improvement) compared with periostin-low patients (all doses: 2.6% placebo-adjusted improvement). Lebrikizumab was well tolerated and no clinically important safety signals were observed.ConclusionsThese data are consistent with, and extend, previously published results demonstrating the efficacy of lebrikizumab in improving rate of asthma exacerbations and lung function in patients with moderate-to-severe asthma who remain uncontrolled despite current standard-of-care treatment.Trial registration numbersThe LUTE study was registered under NCT01545440 and the VERSE study under NCT01545453 at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov

In this randomized, controlled, phase 3 trial involving children between the ages of 6 and 11 years with uncontrolled moderate-to-severe asthma, those who received the monoclonal antibody dupilumab had fewer asthma exacerbations and better lung function and asthma control than those who received placebo.

Among patients with asthma who had elevated blood eosinophil levels and marginal asthma control despite glucocorticoid treatment, the glucocorticoid dose could be significantly reduced in patients receiving a monoclonal antibody that binds to and inactivates interleukin-5. Asthma is a common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways that affects 5 to 10% of adults and children. Although the disease is well controlled with inhaled therapy in most patients, approximately 10% have severe asthma that is associated with substantial morbidity, mortality, and economic effects. 1 Patients with severe asthma have complex treatment requirements, which in 30 to 40% of such patients include the regular use of oral glucocorticoids to control their asthma. 2 – 4 Such therapy can result in serious and often irreversible adverse effects. 5 , 6 Current treatments with glucocorticoid-sparing properties are not recommended in patients with severe asthma because . . .

Clinical benefits of fixed-dose 100-mg subcutaneous (SC) mepolizumab in prednisone-dependent patients are modest when sputum eosinophilia is not adequately controlled. This study compared treatment response of weight-adjusted intravenous (IV) reslizumab in patients previously treated with 100-mg SC mepolizumab. Ten prednisone-dependent patients with asthma (sputum eosinophils >3% and blood eosinophils >300 cells/μl), who had previously received mepolizumab (100 mg SC dosed every 4 wk [Q4W]) for at least 1 year, received two infusions of placebo (Q4W) followed by four infusions of 3.0 mg/kg reslizumab Q4W in a single-blind, placebo-controlled sequential trial. Primary outcomes were reduction of eosinophils in sputum and blood. Additional outcomes included FEV , asthma control questionnaire, eosinophil peroxidase, IL-5, sputum and blood innate lymphoid cells group 2, eosinophil progenitor cells, and autoimmune responses. IV reslizumab attenuated sputum eosinophils by 91.2% (P = 0.002), blood eosinophil counts by 87.4% (P = 0.004), and sputum eosinophil peroxidase levels by 65.5% (P = 0.03) compared with placebo. Attenuation of both local and systemic eosinophilia was associated with statistically significant improvements in FEV (P = 0.004) and asthma control questionnaire five-question instrument scores (P = 0.006). Decrease in percent sputum eosinophil was greater with reslizumab (by 42.7%) compared with mepolizumab (by 5.0%) and this was associated with greater improvement in asthma control questionnaire (P = 0.01; analysis of covariance of Δ between before and after treatment, mepolizumab vs. reslizumab, adjusted for baseline prednisone). Changes in sputum IL-5 and anti-eosinophil peroxidase IgG after anti-IL-5 therapy were predictors of response. Weight-adjusted IV reslizumab was superior to fixed-dose SC mepolizumab in attenuating airway eosinophilia in prednisone-dependent patients with asthma, with associated improvement in asthma control. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT 02559791).

Dupilumab, a fully human anti-interleukin-4 receptor α monoclonal antibody, inhibits interleukin-4 and interleukin-13 signalling, key drivers of type-2-mediated inflammation. Adults with uncontrolled persistent asthma who are receiving medium-to-high-dose inhaled corticosteroids plus a long-acting β2 agonist require additional treatment options as add-on therapy. We aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of dupilumab as add-on therapy in patients with uncontrolled persistent asthma on medium-to-high-dose inhaled corticosteroids plus a long-acting β2 agonist, irrespective of baseline eosinophil count. We did this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, pivotal phase 2b clinical trial at 174 study sites across 16 countries or regions. Adults (aged ≥18 years) with an asthma diagnosis for 12 months or more based on the Global Initiative for Asthma 2009 Guidelines receiving treatment with medium-to-high-dose inhaled corticosteroids plus a long-acting β2 agonist were eligible for participation. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1:1:1:1) to receive subcutaneous dupilumab 200 mg or 300 mg every 2 weeks or every 4 weeks, or placebo, over a 24-week period. The primary endpoint was change from baseline at week 12 in forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1 in L) in patients with baseline blood eosinophil counts of at least 300 eosinophils per μL assessed in the intention-to-treat population. Safety outcomes were assessed in all patients that received at least one dose or part of a dose of study drug. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01854047, and with the EU Clinical Trials Register, EudraCT number 2013-000856-16. 769 patients (158 in the placebo group and 611 in the dupilumab groups) received at least one dose of study drug. In the subgroup with at least 300 eosinophils per μL, the greatest increases (200 mg every 2 weeks, p=0·0008; 300 mg every 2 weeks, p=0·0063) in FEV1 compared with placebo were observed at week 12 with doses every 2 weeks in the 300 mg group (mean change 0·39 L [SE 0·05]; mean difference 0·21 [95% CI 0·06–0·36; p=0·0063]) and in the 200 mg group (mean change 0·43 L [SE 0·05]; mean difference 0·26 [0·11–0·40; p=0·0008]) compared with placebo (0·18 L [SE 0·05]). Similar significant increases were observed in the overall population and in the fewer than 300 eosinophils per μL subgroup (overall population: 200 mg every 2 weeks, p<0·0001; 300 mg every 2 weeks, p<0·0001; <300 eosinophils per μL: 200 mg every 2 weeks, p=0·0034; 300 mg every 2 weeks, p=0·0086), and were maintained to week 24. Likewise, dupilumab every 2 weeks produced the greatest reductions in annualised rates of exacerbation in the overall population (70–70·5%), the subgroup with at least 300 eosinophils per μL (71·2–80·7%), and the subgroup with fewer than 300 eosinophils per μL (59·9–67·6%). The most common adverse events with dupilumab compared with placebo were upper respiratory tract infections (33–41% vs 35%) and injection-site reactions (13–26% vs 13%). Dupilumab increased lung function and reduced severe exacerbations in patients with uncontrolled persistent asthma irrespective of baseline eosinophil count and had a favourable safety profile, and hence in addition to inhaled corticosteroids plus long-acting β2-agonist therapy could improve the lives of patients with uncontrolled persistent asthma compared with standard therapy alone. Sanofi-Genzyme and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.

Patients receiving a long-acting beta-agonist (LABA) and inhaled glucocorticoid for asthma were given dupilumab, a monoclonal antibody to part of the IL-4 receptor, with the LABA and inhaled glucocorticoid withdrawn. There were fewer exacerbations with dupilumab than with placebo. Recent estimates suggest that 24.6 million people in the United States, or 8.2% of the population, have received a diagnosis of asthma. 1 Despite therapy with inhaled glucocorticoids and long-acting beta-agonists (LABAs), the disease is not adequately controlled in 10 to 20% of patients 2 ; these patients are at risk for poor clinical outcomes, and the cost of their care contributes substantially to the economic burden of asthma. 3 – 5 The mechanisms underlying this inadequate control remain poorly understood. The clinical syndrome of persistent, moderate-to-severe asthma is increasingly recognized as comprising various phenotypes. 6 Data indicate that inflammatory processes associated with type 2 . . .

In this trial, patients with poorly controlled asthma despite inhaled glucocorticoid therapy were treated with lebrikizumab, an anti–IL-13 monoclonal antibody. Lebrikizumab was associated with improvement in FEV 1 overall, with greater improvements in patients with a positive IL-13 signature. Asthma is a complex disease with marked heterogeneity in the clinical course and in the response to treatment. 1 – 9 Variability in the type of airway inflammation may underlie this heterogeneity. 2 – 5 Despite treatment with inhaled glucocorticoids, many patients continue to have uncontrolled asthma that requires more intensive therapy. 10 Interleukin-13, a pleiotropic cytokine of type 2 helper T cells (Th2), has been thought to contribute to many key features of asthma. 11 Production of interleukin-13 is inhibited by inhaled glucocorticoids, but these agents also have many other effects on the airways. Some patients with uncontrolled asthma continue to have elevated levels of . . .

Data from a controlled trial of asthma treatment that enrolled patients in the first decade of life were combined with follow-up data to provide novel information on the growth and decline in lung function in the first three decades of life in patients with asthma. In persons without lung disease, forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV 1 ) reaches its maximal level in late adolescence or early adulthood and remains stable for several years, a period known as the plateau of lung function, before gradually declining thereafter (Figure 1). 1 Under the construct described by Speizer and Tager, 1 the pattern of FEV 1 growth and decline in childhood and early adulthood is an important determinant of lung function in later adulthood; both reduced growth resulting in a low maximal level of lung function and early decline are associated with the subsequent development of chronic airflow . . .