NCT06279741

Safety and Efficacy of MSC-EVs in the Prevention of BPD in Extremely Preterm Infants

Phase I Single Arm, Dose Escalating and Phase II Double Blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Dose Finding Clinical Trial Assessing Safety and Efficacy of Intratracheal Administration of Allogeneic Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Cells-derived Extracellular Vesicles in Preventing Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia in Extremely Preterm Newborns

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: Phase 1 / Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 265 (estimated)
• Sponsor: EXO Biologics S.A. · Industry
• Sex: All
• Age: 10 Days
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The phase 1/2 trial aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of EXOB-001 consisting of extracellular vesicles derived from umbilical cord mesenchymal stromal cells in the prevention of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in extremely premature neonates. The study population includes babies born between 23 and 28 (27 + 6 days) weeks of gestational age and body weight between 500g and 1,500 g. Thirty-six subjects will receive one or three administrations of the three doses of EXOB-001 via the endotracheal route in phase 1. In phase 2, two dosages based on the results of phase 1 will be selected and a total of 203 subjects will be randomised to receive either EXOB-001 or placebo (saline solution). Infants will be followed up to 2 years of corrected age (end of study).

Detailed description

Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic severe multifactorial respiratory disease that affects extremely premature infants and is the most common and severe consequence of preterm birth. BPD is associated with disrupted alveolarization and microvascular development, resulting in abnormal gas exchange and lung mechanics. BPD has a multifactorial aetiology, with pre-, peri-, and postnatal mechanisms causing inflammation and injury and resulting in the disruption of the lung's development with the insurgence of an aberrant repair mechanism. EXOB-001 consists of a population of EVs smaller than 0.22 μm in diameter, containing proteins and nucleic acids, enclosed in a double layer of phospholipids with integral and surface-bound proteins as the main components. EVs exert anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activity by reducing the release of proinflammatory cytokines and reducing the recruitment of immune cells in the lung. Current evidence shows that EVs can modulate macrophage phenotype, and this is relevant for BPD, because of the role macrophages have in its pathogenesis. Two hundred sixty-five (265), 40 in phase 1 (to reach 36 evaluable subjects) + 225 in phase 2 (to reach 203 evaluable subjects), extremely preterm infants at risk of developing BPD with 23 weeks up to 28 (27 weeks+6 days) weeks of gestational age and birth weight between 500g and 1,500g and being endotracheally intubated between postnatal day 3 and day 10 receiving mechanical ventilation with FiO2 \> 25%. Phase 1 will start with cohorts with a single administration starting with a low dose up to a high dose and thereafter start the escalation of cohorts with 3 administrations starting with a low dose up to a high dose. In the case of 3 endotracheal administrations, there will be a window of 24 hours between the administrations (the maximal duration of the treatment with EXOB-001 will be 48 hours). Phase 2 includes 2 groups with selected dosage levels and regimen of EXOB-001 based on phase 1 interim results. Subjects will be randomised (2:2:1) to receive either EXOB-001 or placebo (saline solution).

Conditions

• Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BIOLOGICAL	Endotracheopulmonary Instillation, Suspension	The endotracheal administration can be either by endotracheal tube instillation using a 5 French end-hole catheter or by endotracheal tube instillation using the secondary lumen of a dual lumen endotracheal tube. The dose is adjusted to body weight and the endotracheal administration will be performed in an already intubated newborn infant.

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-12-28
• Primary completion: 2027-01-31
• Completion: 2029-12-31
• First posted: 2024-02-28
• Last updated: 2024-09-19

Locations

8 sites across 2 countries: Belgium, Italy