Singapore company initiates Phase I clinical trials of SB1518

S*BIO has announced the initiation of multi-center Phase I clinical trials of SB1518, a potent and orally-active JAK2 inhibitor, in patients with leukemia and certain types of lymphoma.

These comprise of ascending dose studies conducted at several leading clinical sites in the US.

The trials are expected to enroll up to 60 patients and are designed to determine the maximum tolerated dose and to assess the pharmacokinetics and overall safety profile of SB1518.

SB1518 is a small molecule JAK2-selective kinase inhibitor which has high potency against both the wild-type JAK2 kinase and the JAK2 kinase with the V617F mutation.

The V617F mutation is found in high frequencies in various myeloproliferative disorders such as idiopathic myelofibrosis.

SB1518 might also provide an effective treatment for other hematological malignancies with mutations and rearrangements in the JAK2 gene.

Says Jan-Anders Karlsson, CEO of S*BIO: “We are pleased to conduct our company’s first clinical trials in the US at well respected centers such as The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, the University of Chicago Medical Center and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.”