Rocket Pharmaceuticals Presents Positive Clinical Data from Fanconi Anemia, Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency and Severe Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I Programs at the 64th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting

12 Dec 2022
Clinical ResultPhase 2ASHGene TherapyPhase 1
Sustained genetic and phenotypic correction and concomitant hematologic stabilization observed in at least six of 10 evaluable FA patients between 12 and 36 months after RP-L102; a seventh patient potentially demonstrates engraftment and stabilization after 36 months
Robust and sustained efficacy in both adult PKD patients at 24 months post-RP-L301 demonstrated by normalized hemoglobin and improved hemolysis parameters
CRANBURY, NJ, USA I December 12, 2022 IRocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCKT), a leading late-stage biotechnology company advancing an integrated and sustainable pipeline of genetic therapies for rare childhood disorders with high unmet need, today announces positive clinical data from its lentiviral (LV)-based gene therapy programs at the 64th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting, taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana, from December 10-13.
Lentiviral-mediated Gene Therapy for Patients with Fanconi Anemia [Group A]: Updated Results from Global RP-L102 Clinical Trials
The poster presentation includes positive updated data (cut-off October 26, 2022) from the ongoing Phase 2 pivotal trial of RP-L102, Rocket’s ex vivo lentiviral gene therapy candidate for Fanconi AnemiaFanconi Anemia (FA).
Lentiviral-mediated Gene Therapy for Adults and Children with Severe Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency: Results from an Ongoing Global Phase 1 Study
The poster presentation includes positive updated data (cut-off October 26, 2022) from two adult patients with significant anemia who were treated with RP-L301, Rocket’s ex vivo lentiviral gene therapy candidate for Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency (PKD).
Interim Results from an Ongoing Phase 1/2 Study of Lentiviral-mediated Ex-vivo Gene Therapy for Pediatric Patients with Severe Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I
The poster presentation includes previously disclosed top-line data at three to 24 months of follow-up after RP-L201 infusion for all patients and overall survival data for seven patients at 12 months or longer after infusion. RP-L201 is Rocket’s ex vivo lentiviral gene therapy candidate for severe Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I).
Fanconi Anemia (FA) is a rare pediatric disease characterized by bone marrow failure, malformations and cancer predisposition. The primary cause of death among patients with FA is bone marrow failure, which typically occurs during the first decade of life. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), when available, corrects the hematologic component of FA, but requires myeloablative conditioning. Graft-versus-host disease, a known complication of allogeneic HSCT, is associated with an increased risk of solid tumors, mainly squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck region. Approximately 60-70% of patients with FA have a Fanconi Anemia complementation group A (FANCA) gene mutation, which encodes for a protein essential for DNA repair. Mutations in the FANCA gene leads to chromosomal breakage and increased sensitivity to oxidative and environmental stress. Increased sensitivity to DNA-alkylating agents such as mitomycin-C (MMC) or diepoxybutane (DEB) is a ‘gold standard’ test for FA diagnosis. Somatic mosaicism occurs when there is a spontaneous correction of the mutated gene that can lead to stabilization or correction of a FA patient’s blood counts in the absence of any administered therapy. Somatic mosaicism, often referred to as ‘natural gene therapy’ provides a strong rationale for the development of FA gene therapy because of the selective growth advantage of gene-corrected hematopoietic stem cells over FA cells.
About Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency
Pyruvate kinase deficiency (PKD) is a rare, monogenic red blood cell disorder resulting from a mutation in the PKLR gene encoding for the pyruvate kinase enzyme, a key component of the red blood cell glycolytic pathway. Mutations in the PKLR gene result in increased red cell destruction and the disorder ranges from mild to life-threatening anemia. PKD has an estimated prevalence of 4,000 to 8,000 patients in the United States and the European Union. Children are the most commonly and severely affected subgroup of patients. Currently available treatments include splenectomy and red blood cell transfusions, which are associated with immune defects and chronic iron overload. Recently, mitapivat, an oral enzyme activator, was approved for use in the least severely-afflicted adult patients (those who are not transfusion-dependent and do not have mutations known to cause severe disease).
RP-L301 was in-licensed from the Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (CIEMAT), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER) and Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de la Fundación Jiménez Díaz (IIS-FJD).
About Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I
Severe Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I) is a rare, autosomal recessive pediatric disease caused by mutations in the ITGB2 gene encoding for the beta-2 integrin component CD18. CD18 is a key protein that facilitates leukocyte adhesion and extravasation from blood vessels to combat infections. As a result, children with severe LAD-I are often affected immediately after birth. During infancy, they suffer from recurrent life-threatening bacterial and fungal infections that respond poorly to antibiotics and require frequent hospitalizations. Children who survive infancy experience recurrent severe infections including pneumonia, gingival ulcers, necrotic skin ulcers, and septicemia. Without a successful bone marrow transplant, mortality in patients with severe LAD-I is 60-75% prior to the age of 2 and survival beyond the age of 5 is uncommon. There is a high unmet medical need for patients with severe LAD-I.
Rocket’s LAD-I research is made possible by a grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (Grant Number CLIN2-11480). The contents of this press release are solely the responsibility of Rocket and do not necessarily represent the official views of CIRM or any other agency of the State of California.
Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCKT) is advancing an integrated and sustainable pipeline of investigational genetic therapies designed to correct the root cause of complex and rare childhood disorders. The Company’s platform-agnostic approach enables it to design the best therapy for each indication, creating potentially transformative options for patients afflicted with rare genetic diseases. Rocket's clinical programs using lentiviral vector (LVV)-based gene therapy are for the treatment of Fanconi Anemia (FA), a difficult to treat genetic disease that leads to bone marrow failure and potentially cancer, Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I), a severe pediatric genetic disorder that causes recurrent and life-threatening infections which are frequently fatal, and Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency (PKD), a rare, monogenic red blood cell disorder resulting in increased red cell destruction and mild to life-threatening anemia. Rocket’s first clinical program using adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapy is for Danon Disease, a devastating, pediatric heart failure condition. Rocket also has a preclinical AAV-based gene therapy program in BAG3-associated dilated cardiomyopathyBAG3-associated dilated cardiomyopathy. For more information about Rocket, please visit www.rocketpharma.com.
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