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Browsing by Author "Felner, Eric I."
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Item Alefacept provides sustained clinical and immunological effects in new-onset type 1 diabetes patients(American Society for Clinical Investigation, 2015-08-03) Rigby, Mark R.; Harris, Kristina M.; Pinckney, Ashley; DiMeglio, Linda A.; Rendell, Marc S.; Felner, Eric I.; Dostou, Jean M.; Gitelman, Stephen E.; Griffin, Kurt J.; Tsalikian, Eva; Gottlieb, Peter A.; Greenbaum, Carla J.; Sherry, Nicole A.; Moore, Wayne V.; Monzavi, Roshanak; Willi, Steven M.; Raskin, Philip; Keyes-Elstein, Lynette; Long, S. Alice; Kanaparthi, Sai; Lim, Noha; Phippard, Deborah; Soppe, Carol L.; Fitzgibbon, Margret L.; McNamara, James; Nepom, Gerald T.; Ehlers, Mario R.; Department of Pediatrics, IU School of MedicineBACKGROUND: Type 1 diabetes (T1D) results from destruction of pancreatic β cells by autoreactive effector T cells. We hypothesized that the immunomodulatory drug alefacept would result in targeted quantitative and qualitative changes in effector T cells and prolonged preservation of endogenous insulin secretion by the remaining β cells in patients with newly diagnosed T1D. METHODS: In a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, we compared alefacept (two 12-week courses of 15 mg/wk i.m., separated by a 12-week pause) with placebo in patients with recent onset of T1D. Endpoints were assessed at 24 months and included meal-stimulated C-peptide AUC, insulin use, hypoglycemic events, and immunologic responses. RESULTS: A total of 49 patients were enrolled. At 24 months, or 15 months after the last dose of alefacept, both the 4-hour and the 2-hour C-peptide AUCs were significantly greater in the treatment group than in the control group (P = 0.002 and 0.015, respectively). Exogenous insulin requirements were lower (P = 0.002) and rates of major hypoglycemic events were about 50% reduced (P < 0.001) in the alefacept group compared with placebo at 24 months. There was no apparent between-group difference in glycemic control or adverse events. Alefacept treatment depleted CD4+ and CD8+ central memory T cells (Tcm) and effector memory T cells (Tem) (P < 0.01), preserved Tregs, increased the ratios of Treg to Tem and Tcm (P < 0.01), and increased the percentage of PD-1+CD4+ Tem and Tcm (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with newly diagnosed T1D, two 12-week courses of alefacept preserved C-peptide secretion, reduced insulin use and hypoglycemic events, and induced favorable immunologic profiles at 24 months, well over 1 year after cessation of therapy. TRIAL REGISTRATION: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ NCT00965458. FUNDING: NIH and Astellas.Item Diazoxide Choline Extended-Release Tablet in People With Prader-Willi Syndrome: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial(Oxford University Press, 2023) Miller, Jennifer L.; Gevers, Evelien; Bridges, Nicola; Yanovski, Jack A.; Salehi, Parisa; Obrynba, Kathryn S.; Felner, Eric I.; Bird, Lynne M.; Shoemaker, Ashley H.; Angulo, Moris; Butler, Merlin G.; Stevenson, David; Abuzzahab, Jennifer; Barrett, Timothy; Lah, Melissa; Littlejohn, Elizabeth; Mathew, Verghese; Cowen, Neil M.; Bhatnagar, Anish; DESTINY PWS Investigators; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of MedicineContext: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a rare neurobehavioral-metabolic disease caused by the lack of paternally expressed genes in the chromosome 15q11-q13 region, characterized by hypotonia, neurocognitive problems, behavioral difficulties, endocrinopathies, and hyperphagia resulting in severe obesity if not controlled. Objective: The primary end point was change from baseline in hyperphagia using the Hyperphagia Questionnaire for Clinical Trials (HQ-CT). Other end points included Global Impression Scores, and changes in body composition, behaviors, and hormones. Methods: In DESTINY PWS, a 13-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial, 127 participants with PWS aged 4 years and older with hyperphagia were randomly assigned 2:1 to diazoxide choline extended-release tablet (DCCR) or placebo. Results: DCCR did not significantly improve hyperphagia (HQ-CT least-square mean (LSmean) [SE] -5.94 [0.879] vs -4.27 [1.145]; P = .198), but did so in participants with severe hyperphagia (LSmean [SE] -9.67 [1.429] vs -4.26 [1.896]; P = .012). Two of 3 secondary end points were improved (Clinical Global Impression of Improvement [CGI-I]; P = .029; fat mass; P = .023). In an analysis of results generated pre-COVID, the primary (HQ-CT; P = .037) and secondary end points were all improved (CGI-I; P = .015; Caregiver Global Impression of Change; P = .031; fat mass; P = .003). In general, DCCR was well tolerated with 83.3% in the DCCR group experiencing a treatment-emergent adverse event and 73.8% in the placebo group (not significant). Conclusion: DCCR did not significantly improve hyperphagia in the primary analysis but did in participants with severe baseline hyperphagia and in the pre-COVID analysis. DCCR treatment was associated with significant improvements in body composition and clinician-reported outcomes.