A pilot trial of RNS60 in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Corresponding Author
Sabrina Paganoni MD, PhD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Correspondence to: S. Paganoni; e-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorMohamad J. Alshikho MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSarah Luppino RN
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorJames Chan MA
Massachusetts General Hospital Biostatistics Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorLindsay Pothier BA
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorDavid Schoenfeld PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital Biostatistics Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorPatricia L. Andres DPT
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorSuma Babu MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorNicole R. Zürcher PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMarco L. Loggia PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorRobert L. Barry PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSilvia Luotti MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorGiovanni Nardo PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorMaria Chiara Trolese MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorSerena Pantalone MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorCaterina Bendotti PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorValentina Bonetto PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorFabiola De Marchi MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorBruce Rosen MD, PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorJacob Hooker PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMerit Cudkowicz MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorNazem Atassi MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Sabrina Paganoni MD, PhD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Correspondence to: S. Paganoni; e-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorMohamad J. Alshikho MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSarah Luppino RN
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorJames Chan MA
Massachusetts General Hospital Biostatistics Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorLindsay Pothier BA
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorDavid Schoenfeld PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital Biostatistics Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorPatricia L. Andres DPT
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorSuma Babu MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorNicole R. Zürcher PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMarco L. Loggia PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorRobert L. Barry PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSilvia Luotti MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorGiovanni Nardo PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorMaria Chiara Trolese MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorSerena Pantalone MS
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorCaterina Bendotti PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorValentina Bonetto PhD
IRCCS Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy
Search for more papers by this authorFabiola De Marchi MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorBruce Rosen MD, PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorJacob Hooker PhD
Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMerit Cudkowicz MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorNazem Atassi MD
Neurological Clinical Research Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, 165 Cambridge Street, Suite 600, Boston, Massachusetts, 02114 USA
Search for more papers by this authorABSTRACT
Introduction: RNS60 is a novel immune-modulatory agent that has shown neuroprotective effects in amytrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) preclinical models. RNS60 is administered by weekly intravenous infusion and daily nebulization. The objective of this pilot open-label trial was to test the feasibility, safety, and tolerability of long-term RNS60 administration in ALS patients. Methods: The planned treatment duration was 23 weeks and the primary outcomes were safety and tolerability. Secondary outcomes included PBR28 positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and plasma biomarkers of inflammation. Results: Sixteen participants with ALS received RNS60 and 13 (81%) completed 23 weeks of RNS60 treatment. There were no serious adverse events and no participants withdrew from the trial due to drug-related adverse events. There were no significant changes in the biomarkers. Discussion: Long-term RNS60 administration was safe and well-tolerated. A large, multicenter, phase II trial of RNS60 is currently enrolling participants to test the effects of RNS60 on ALS biomarkers and disease progression. Muscle Nerve 59:303–308, 2019
Supporting Information
Filename | Description |
---|---|
mus26385-sup-0001-Figs1.tifTIFF image, 657 KB | Supplementary figure 1. Study Schema |
mus26385-sup-0002-Figs2.tifTIFF image, 1.3 MB | Supplementary figure 2. ALSFRS-R (panel A and B) and SVC (panel C and D). |
mus26385-sup-0003-TableS1.docxWord 2007 document , 14.7 KB | Supplementary Table 1. Adverse Events (AEs). |
mus26385-sup-0004-supinfo.docxWord 2007 document , 13.2 KB | Supproting Informations |
Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.
REFERENCES
- 1Hardiman O, Al-Chalabi A, Brayne C, Beghi E, van den Berg LH, Chio A, et al. The changing picture of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: lessons from European registers. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2017; 88: 557–563.
- 2 Edaravone ALSSG Writing Group. Safety and efficacy of edaravone in well defined patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol 2017; 16: 505–512.
- 3Miller RG, Mitchell JD, Moore DH. Riluzole for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)/motor neuron disease (MND). Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2012:CD001447.
- 4Alexianu ME, Kozovska M, Appel SH. Immune reactivity in a mouse model of familial ALS correlates with disease progression. Neurology 2001; 57: 1282–1289.
- 5Appel SH, Zhao W, Beers DR, Henkel JS. The microglial–motoneuron dialogue in ALS. Acta Myol 2011; 30: 4–8.
- 6Kano O, Beers DR, Henkel JS, Appel SH. Peripheral nerve inflammation in ALS mice: cause or consequence. Neurology 2012; 78: 833–835.
- 7Zurcher NR, Loggia ML, Lawson R, Chonde DB, Izquierdo-Garcia D, Yasek JE, et al. Increased in vivo glial activation in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: assessed with [(11)C]-PBR28. Neuroimage Clin 2015; 7: 409–414.
- 8Turner MR, Cagnin A, Turkheimer FE, Miller CC, Shaw CE, Brooks DJ, et al. Evidence of widespread cerebral microglial activation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: an [11C](R)-PK11195 positron emission tomography study. Neurobiol Dis 2004; 15: 601–609.
- 9Lincecum JM, Vieira FG, Wang MZ, Thompson K, De Zutter GS, Kidd J, et al. From transcriptome analysis to therapeutic anti-CD40L treatment in the SOD1 model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Nat Genet 2010; 42: 392–399.
- 10Vaknin I, Kunis G, Miller O, Butovsky O, Bukshpan S, Beers DR, et al. Excess circulating alternatively activated myeloid (M2) cells accelerate ALS progression while inhibiting experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. PLoS One 2011; 6:e26921.
- 11Butovsky O, Siddiqui S, Gabriely G, Lanser AJ, Dake B, Murugaiyan G, et al. Modulating inflammatory monocytes with a unique microRNA gene signature ameliorates murine ALS. J Clin Invest 2012; 122: 3063–3087.
- 12Chiu IM, Phatnani H, Kuligowski M, Tapia JC, Carrasco MA, Zhang M, et al. Activation of innate and humoral immunity in the peripheral nervous system of ALS transgenic mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2009; 106: 20960–20965.
- 13Chiu IM, Morimoto ET, Goodarzi H, Liao JT, O'Keeffe S, Phatnani HP, et al. A neurodegeneration-specific gene-expression signature of acutely isolated microglia from an amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mouse model. Cell Rep 2013; 4: 385–401.
- 14Engelhardt JI, Tajti J, Appel SH. Lymphocytic infiltrates in the spinal cord in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Arch Neurol 1993; 50: 30–36.
- 15Henkel JS, Beers DR, Siklos L, Appel SH. The chemokine MCP-1 and the dendritic and myeloid cells it attracts are increased in the mSOD1 mouse model of ALS. Mol Cell Neurosci 2006; 31: 427–437.
- 16Alshikho MJ, Zurcher NR, Loggia ML, Cernasov P, Chonde DB, Izquierdo Garcia D, et al. Glial activation colocalizes with structural abnormalities in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurology 2016; 87: 2554–2561.
- 17Beers DR, Henkel JS, Zhao W, Wang J, Huang A, Wen S, et al. Endogenous regulatory T lymphocytes ameliorate amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in mice and correlate with disease progression in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Brain 2011; 134: 1293–1314.
- 18Zhao W, Beers DR, Liao B, Henkel JS, Appel SH. Regulatory T lymphocytes from ALS mice suppress microglia and effector T lymphocytes through different cytokine-mediated mechanisms. Neurobiol Dis 2012; 48: 418–428.
- 19Henkel JS, Beers DR, Wen S, Rivera AL, Toennis KM, Appel JE, et al. Regulatory T-lymphocytes mediate amyotrophic lateral sclerosis progression and survival. EMBO Mol Med 2013; 5: 64–79.
- 20Khasnavis S, Jana A, Roy A, Mazumder M, Bhushan B, Wood T, et al. Suppression of nuclear factor-kappaB activation and inflammation in microglia by physically modified saline. J Biol Chem 2012; 287: 29529–29542.
- 21Mondal S, Martinson JA, Ghosh S, Watson R, Pahan K. Protection of Tregs, suppression of Th1 and Th17 cells, and amelioration of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis by a physically-modified saline. PLoS One 2012; 7:e51869.
- 22Khasnavis S, Roy A, Ghosh S, Watson R, Pahan K. Protection of dopaminergic neurons in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease by a physically-modified saline containing charge-stabilized nanobubbles. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol 2014; 9: 218–232.
- 23Modi KK, Jana A, Ghosh S, Watson R, Pahan K. A physically-modified saline suppresses neuronal apoptosis, attenuates tau phosphorylation and protects memory in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease. PLoS One 2014; 9:e103606.
- 24Rao VT, Khan D, Jones RG, Nakamura DS, Kennedy TE, Cui QL, et al. Potential benefit of the charge-stabilized nanostructure saline RNS60 for myelin maintenance and repair. Sci Rep 2016; 6:30020.
- 25Mondal S, Rangasamy SB, Ghosh S, Watson RL, Pahan K. Nebulization of RNS60, a physically-modified saline, attenuates the adoptive transfer of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in mice: implications for multiple sclerosis therapy. Neurochem Res 2017; 42: 1555–1570.
- 26Jana M, Ghosh S, Pahan K. Upregulation of myelin gene expression by a physically-modified saline via phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-mediated activation of CREB: implications for multiple sclerosis. Neurochem Res 2017; 43: 407–419.
- 27Vallarola A, Sironi F, Tortarolo M, Gatto N, De Gioia R, Pasetto L, et al. RNS60 exerts therapeutic effects in the SOD1 ALS mouse model through protective glia and peripheral nerve rescue. J Neuroinflamm 2018; 15: 65.
- 28Brooks BR, Miller RG, Swash M, Munsat TL, World Federation of Neurology Research Group on Motor Neuron Disease. El Escorial revisited: revised criteria for the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Other Motor Neuron Disord 2000; 1: 293–299.
- 29Owen DR, Yeo AJ, Gunn RN, Song K, Wadsworth G, Lewis A, et al. An 18-kDa translocator protein (TSPO) polymorphism explains differences in binding affinity of the PET radioligand PBR28. J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2012; 32: 1–5.
- 30Cedarbaum JM, Stambler N, Malta E, Fuller C, Hilt D, Thurmond B, et al. The ALSFRS-R: a revised ALS functional rating scale that incorporates assessments of respiratory function. BDNF ALS Study Group (Phase III). J Neurol Sci 1999; 169: 13–21.
- 31Andres PL, Skerry LM, Munsat TL, Thornell BJ, Szymonifka J, Schoenfeld DA, et al. Validation of a new strength measurement device for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis clinical trials. Muscle Nerve 2012; 45: 81–85.
- 32Andres PL, English R, Mendoza M, Florence J, Malkus E, Schierbecker J, et al. Developing normalized strength scores for neuromuscular research. Muscle Nerve 2013; 47: 177–182.
- 33Imaizumi M, Kim HJ, Zoghbi SS, Briard E, Hong J, Musachio JL, et al. PET imaging with [11C]PBR28 can localize and quantify upregulated peripheral benzodiazepine receptors associated with cerebral ischemia in rat. Neurosci Lett 2007; 411: 200–205.
- 34Loggia ML, Chonde DB, Akeju O, Arabasz G, Catana C, Edwards RR, et al. Evidence for brain glial activation in chronic pain patients. Brain 2015; 138: 604–615.
- 35Nichols TE, Holmes AP. Nonparametric permutation tests for functional neuroimaging: a primer with examples. Hum Brain Mapp 2002; 15: 1–25.
- 36Smith SM, Nichols TE. Threshold-free cluster enhancement: addressing problems of smoothing, threshold dependence and localisation in cluster inference. Neuroimage 2009; 44: 83–98.
- 37Paganoni S, Alshikho MJ, Zurcher NR, Cernasov P, Babu S, Loggia ML, et al. Imaging of glia activation in people with primary lateral sclerosis. Neuroimage Clin 2018; 17: 347–353.
- 38Cudkowicz ME, Titus S, Kearney M, Yu H, Sherman A, Schoenfeld D, et al. Safety and efficacy of ceftriaxone for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a multi-stage, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol 2014; 13: 1083–1091.
- 39Rentzos M, Rombos A, Nikolaou C, Zoga M, Zouvelou V, Dimitrakopoulos A, et al. Interleukin-17 and interleukin-23 are elevated in serum and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with ALS: a reflection of Th17 cells activation? Acta Neurol Scand 2010; 122: 425–429.
- 40Fiala M, Chattopadhay M, La Cava A, Tse E, Liu G, Lourenco E, et al. IL-17A is increased in the serum and in spinal cord CD8 and mast cells of ALS patients. J Neuroinflamm 2010; 7: 76.
- 41Beers DR, Zhao W, Wang J, Zhang X, Wen S, Neal D, et al. ALS patients' regulatory T lymphocytes are dysfunctional, and correlate with disease progression rate and severity. JCI Insight 2017; 2:e89530.
- 42Alshikho MJ, Zurcher NR, Loggia ML, Cernasov P, Reynolds B, Pijanowski O, et al. Integrated MRI and [(11) C]-PBR28 PET imaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Ann Neurol 2018.