Pharmacotherapeutic group: Bile and liver therapy, other drugs for bile therapy ATC code: A05AX07.
Mechanism of action
Seladelpar is a potent and selective PPARδ agonist, or delpar. PPARδ is a nuclear receptor expressed in the liver and other tissues. PPARδ activation reduces bile acid synthesis in the liver through Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 (FGF21)-dependent downregulation of CYP7A1, the key enzyme for the synthesis of bile acids from cholesterol, and by decreasing cholesterol synthesis and absorption. These actions result in lower bile acid exposure in the liver and reduced circulating bile acid levels. Seladelpar also has positive effects on serum lipids, inflammation, and fibrosis.
Pruritus is a common symptom in patients with PBC, but its origins are not completely understood. Seladelpar treatment has been shown to reduce pruritus, which was associated with decreased serum bile acids and Interleukin-31 (IL-31). Both bile acids and IL-31 have been found to be involved in pruritus.
Pharmacodynamic Markers
In clinical studies, seladelpar treatment resulted in reduction of ALP, a biomarker of cholestasis. ALP reduction was observed within 1 week of treatment initiation, continued to decrease through Month 3, and was sustained through Month 24.
In RESPONSE, the median decrease in serum 7α-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one (a bile acid synthesis intermediate) and total bile acids at Month 12 were 41.9% and 32.0%, respectively, after treatment with seladelpar, reflecting action leading to diminished cholestatic accumulation of total bile acids. Seladelpar also increased mean serum FGF21 levels by 76.2% after 12 months of treatment; this increase is a known effect of PPARδ activation in hepatocytes that leads to decreased bile acid synthesis.
In RESPONSE, treatment with seladelpar led to a 44.9% and 31.6% mean decrease in IL-31 after 6 and 12 months of treatment in patients with moderate-to-severe pruritus, which was associated with improvements in pruritus severity.
Decreases in triglycerides, LDL-C, and total cholesterol were noted with seladelpar treatment.
Pharmacodynamic Effects
Cardiac Electrophysiology
At a dose of 20-times the 10 mg recommended dose, LIVDELZI was not associated with clinically significant QT prolongation.
Clinical efficacy and safety
A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 12-month study (RESPONSE) evaluated the safety and efficacy of LIVDELZI in 193 adult patients with PBC who had an inadequate response to or intolerance to ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA). Patients were included in the study if their ALP was greater than or equal to 1.67-times the ULN and total bilirubin (TB) was less than or equal to 2-times the ULN. Patients were excluded from the study if they had other chronic liver diseases, clinically important hepatic decompensation (including portal hypertension with complications), or cirrhosis with complications (e.g., Model for End Stage Liver Disease [MELD] score of 12 or greater, known oesophageal varices or history of variceal bleeds, history of hepatorenal syndrome).
Patients were randomised (2:1) to receive LIVDELZI 10 mg (n=128) or placebo (n=65) once daily for 12 months. LIVDELZI or placebo was administered in combination with UDCA in 181 (94%) patients during the study, or as a monotherapy in 12 (6%) patients who were unable to tolerate UDCA.
The mean age of patients was 57 years (range: 28 to 75); 95% were female; 88% were White, 6% Asian, 2% Black or African American, and 3% American Indian or Alaska Native; 29% identified as Hispanic/Latino. At baseline, 18 (14%) of the LIVDELZI-treated patients and 9 (14%) of the placebo-treated patients met at least one of the following criteria: Fibroscan >16.9kPa; historical biopsy or radiological evidence suggestive of cirrhosis; platelet count < 140,000/μL with at least one additional laboratory finding including serum albumin < 3.5 g/dL, INR > 1.3, or TB > 1-time ULN; or clinical determination of cirrhosis by the investigator.
The mean baseline ALP concentration was 314 U/L (range: 161 to 786), corresponding to 2.7-times ULN. The mean baseline TB concentration was 0.8 mg/dL (range: 0.3 to 2.0) and was less than or equal to the ULN in 87% of the patients. Other mean baseline liver biochemistries included ALT of 48 U/L (range: 9 to 115) and AST of 40 U/L (range: 16 to 94).
LIVDELZI demonstrated greater improvement on biochemical response and ALP normalisation at Month 12 compared to placebo. In patients with moderate to severe pruritus at baseline, LIVDELZI demonstrated greater improvement in pruritus Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) at Month 6 compared to placebo. Treatment outcomes of the RESPONSE study are presented in Table 2.
Table 2: RESPONSE Study: Efficacy Results of LIVDELZI With or Without UDCAa
| | LIVDELZI 10 mg (N=128) | Placebo (N=65) |
| Primary Composite Endpoint at Month 12a,c | | |
| Responder rate, (%) [95% CI] | 62 [53, 70] | 20 [10, 30] |
| Components of Primary Endpoint | | |
| ALP less than 1.67-times ULN, (%) | 66 | 26 |
| Decrease in ALP of at least 15%, (%) | 84 | 32 |
| Total bilirubin less than or equal to ULNd, (%) | 81 | 77 |
| ALP Normalisationb,c | | |
| ALP Normalisation at Month 12, ≤1.0×ULN (%) [95% CI] | 25 [18, 33] | 0 [0, 0] |
| Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale (NRS)d | N=49 | N=23 |
| Pruritus NRS Change from Baseline at Month 6 (Weekly Averages) in patients with Baseline Score ≥4 | -3.2 | -1.7 |
a Biochemical response is defined as an ALP value less than 1.67-times the ULN, an ALP decrease of at least 15%, and total bilirubin less than or equal to the ULN.
b ALP normalisation is defined as ALP less than or equal to ULN.
c p<0.0001 for LIVDELZI 10 mg versus placebo. P-value was obtained using the Cochran–Mantel–Haenszel Test stratified by baseline ALP level (<350 U/L versus ALP level ≥350 U/L), and baseline pruritus NRS (< 4 versus ≥ 4). Patients who discontinued treatment prior to Month 12 or who had missing data were considered as non-responders.
d p<0.005 for LIVDELZI 10 mg versus placebo. LS means and p-value were obtained using the mixed-effect model for repeated measures (MMRM) in patients with moderate to severe pruritus at baseline.
Mean Reduction in ALP
Figure 1 shows the mean reductions in ALP over 12 months in LIVDELZI-treated patients compared to placebo. ALP normalisation was achieved in 25% of LIVDELZI-treated patients by Month 12 and was achieved in no placebo-treated patients. The Least Squares (LS) mean (SE) reduction in GGT, ALT, and AST was -108.0 (8.49), -12.2 (1.62), and -2.5 (1.31) U/L, respectively, in the LIVDELZI 10 mg arm, and -18.3 (11.79), -3.9 (2.22), and -1.5 (1.80) U/L, respectively, in the placebo arm at Month 12.
Figure 1: Change from Baseline in ALP over 12 Months in RESPONSE by Treatment Arm with or without UDCAa
a In the study there were 12 patients (6%) who were intolerant to UDCA and initiated treatment as monotherapy: 8 patients (6%) in the LIVDELZI 10 mg arm and 4 patients (6%) in the placebo arm.
In the ASSURE study, long-term maintenance of biochemical effects was sustained beyond two years of treatment with LIVDELZI.
Monotherapy
Biochemical response at Month 3 comparing LIVDELZI as a monotherapy to placebo was evaluated in a pooled analysis of a subset of patients from RESPONSE and another randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in a similar patient population. Sixty-two percent (62%) of LIVDELZI-treated patients achieved a response on the composite endpoint, compared to 17% of placebo-treated patients.
Pruritus
A single-item patient-reported outcome (PRO), the pruritus NRS, evaluated patients' daily worst itching intensity on an 11-point rating scale with scores ranging from 0 (“no itching”) to 10 (“worst itching imaginable”) in RESPONSE. The pruritus NRS was administered daily in a ≥14-day run-in period prior to randomisation through Month 6. After 6 months, pruritus was evaluated on a monthly basis through Month 12 using pruritus NRS for 7 consecutive days each month.
Figure 2 presents the results of the comparison between LIVDELZI and placebo on pruritus NRS through Month 12 in patients with baseline average pruritus scores greater than or equal to 4. Baseline included mean of all daily recorded scores during the run in-period and on Day 1. The pruritus scores for each patient for post-baseline months were calculated by averaging the pruritus NRS scores within the scheduled week each month. Patients treated with LIVDELZI demonstrated greater improvement in pruritus compared with placebo. This effect was sustained through Month 12 of treatment.
Figure 2: Change from Baseline in Pruritus NRS over Time in the RESPONSE Study in PBC Patients with Moderate to Severe Pruritus at Baseline
Paediatric population
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has waived the obligation to submit the results of studies with LIVDELZI in all subsets of the paediatric population (see section 4.2 for information on paediatric use).