The abstract, entitled “The Heparinoid Sevuparin Improves Anemia and Kidney Status in a Mouse Model of Chronic Kidney Disease” will be presented as a poster by Dr Michela Asperti, co-author and a senior member of Professor Maura Poli’s research group at the University of Brescia. The presentation includes results on sevuparin and its effect on hemoglobin and other anemia measures as well as on the kidney function and tissue, with and without simultaneous erythropoietin (EPO) treatment.

Professor Poli and her team at the University of Brescia have established world-leading research on iron regulation in anemia, a condition in which the number of red blood cells, or the hemoglobin concentration within them is lower than normal. The data to be presented at ASH shows that sevuparin can counteract the anemia that occurs in a well-established chronic kidney disease model in mice, while suppressing the iron regulating hormone hepcidin. When given together with EPO, a standard of care anemia treatment in kidney disease, sevuparin potentiated and helped maintain the hemoglobin response for up to 6 weeks. Furthermore, indicative benefits on kidney function, as measured by creatinine levels in the blood, as well as on the kidney tissue when examined microscopically for fibrosis, were observed with sevuparin treatment alone and in combination with EPO.

John Ohd, Chief Executive Officer of Modus Therapeutics commented: “The exciting new data to be presented at ASH 2023 continues the work we announced earlier this year in which the profound hepcidin inhibiting capacity of sevuparin was shown to translate across preclinical cell cultures, in vivo experiments in mice and clinical studies in healthy volunteers. Together with Professor Poli and co-workers, we can now build further by showing the effects not only on hepcidin but also on the anemia in a chronic kidney disease model in mice, which reinforces the relevance of sevuparin as a potential treatment in kidney disease with anemia.”

Approximately 10% of the global population is presumed to have grade 3-5 chronic kidney disease and about 25% of these are expected to have anemia, which corresponds to approximately 4-5 million patients in the US alone. In chronic kidney disease anemia erythropoiesis stimulating agents such as EPO are used to increase the production of red blood cells and are considered the standard of care. However, resistance and hypo-responsiveness to standards of care often constitute issues in maintaining a good treatment response over time in kidney disease patients.

John Ohd, Chief Executive Officer of Modus Therapeutics continued: “It was particularly encouraging that sevuparin could both potentiate and maintain the effect on the hemoglobin levels over time in renally impaired mice treated with the standard of care EPO. This, together with the finding that sevuparin treatment also seemed to confer some protection to the kidney function and tissue pathology in this preclinical mouse model adds to our resolve in continuing development in anemia of chronic kidney disease and other disorders with chronic inflammation going forward.”

The poster will be presented on December 10 at 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Pacific time
The abstract can be found here: https://ash.confex.com/ash/2023/webprogram/Paper181587.html