tacrolimus and voclosporin

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness and safety of voclosporin + mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), tacrolimus + MMF, and monotherapy with MMF or cyclophosphamide as induction treatment for lupus nephritis.. The study included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated the effectiveness and safety of voclosporin + MMF, tacrolimus + MMF, and monotherapy for induction treatment in patients with lupus nephritis. To incorporate direct and indirect evidence from RCTs, we used a Bayesian network meta-analysis.. Four RCTs, including 936 participants, met the inclusion criteria. Tacrolimus + MMF substantially increased the incidence of complete remission relative to that following monotherapy (odds ratio [OR] 2.85; 95% credible interval [CrI] 1.87-4.39). Tacrolimus + MMF was also more effective than voclosporin + MMF (OR 1.43; 95% CrI 0.80-2.57). Tacrolimus + MMF showed the greatest chance of being the optimal treatment for overall response (surface under the cumulative ranking curve [SUCRA] = 0.942), followed by voclosporin + MMF (SUCRA = 0.558) and monotherapy (SUCRA = 0.001). In terms of safety based on severe event rates, monotherapy had the greatest chance of being the safest treatment (SUCRA = 0.903), followed by voclosporin + MMF (SUCRA = 0.517) and tacrolimus + MMF (SUCRA = 0.081).. Tacrolimus + MMF and voclosporin + MMF were more effective than monotherapy, and tacrolimus + MMF was the most effective induction treatment for lupus nephritis patients. However, tacrolimus + MMF did pose a greater risk of serious adverse events than monotherapy.. ZIEL DER ARBEIT: Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war es, die Wirksamkeit und Sicherheit von Voclosporin + Mycophenolat-Mofetil (MMF) zum einen, Tacrolimus + MMF zum anderen und einer Monotherapie mit MMF oder Cyclophosphamid als Induktionstherapie bei Lupusnephritis zu vergleichen.. In die Studie wurden randomisierte kontrollierte Studien (RCT) einbezogen, in denen die Wirksamkeit und Sicherheit von Voclosporin + MMF, Tacrolimus + MMF und einer Monotherapie als Induktionstherapie bei Patienten mit Lupusnephritis verglichen wurde. Um direkte und indirekte Evidenz aus RCT zu erfassen, wurde eine Bayes-Netzwerk-Metaanalyse durchgeführt.. Von 4 RCT mit 936 Teilnehmern wurden die Einschlusskriterien erfüllt. Tacrolimus + MMF führten zu einer wesentlich erhöhten Inzidenz kompletter Remissionen im Verhältnis zur Situation nach Monotherapie (Odds Ratio [OR] 2,85; 95%-Glaubwürdigkeitsintervall, Credibility Interval [CrI] 1,87–4,39). Tacrolimus + MMF erwiesen sich auch als wirksamer denn Voclosporin + MMF (OR 1,43; 95%-CrI 0,80–2,57). Bei Tacrolimus + MMF bestand die höchste Wahrscheinlichkeit, die optimale Therapie in Bezug auf das Gesamtansprechen darzustellen (Oberfläche unter der kumulativen Ranking-Kurve [SUCRA] = 0,942), dann folgten Voclosporin + MMF (SUCRA = 0,558) und die Monotherapie (SUCRA = 0,001). In Hinsicht auf die Sicherheit, basierend auf der Rate schwerer unerwünschter Ereignisse, bestand die höchste Wahrscheinlichkeit, die sicherste Therapie darzustellen, für die Monotherapie (SUCRA = 0,903), dann folgten Voclosporin + MMF (SUCRA = 0,517) und Tacrolimus + MMF (SUCRA = 0,081).. Tacrolimus + MMF und Voclosporin + MMF waren wirksamer als die Monotherapie, und Tacrolimus + MMF erwies sich als die wirksamste Induktionstherapie bei Patienten mit Lupusnephritis. Allerdings war das Risiko schwerer unerwünschter Ereignisse unter Tacrolimus + MMF größer als unter Monotherapie.

Topics: Cyclophosphamide; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; Lupus Nephritis; Mycophenolic Acid; Network Meta-Analysis; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Remission Induction; Tacrolimus; Treatment Outcome

Topics: Cyclosporine; Glucocorticoids; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; Tacrolimus

Topics: Adalimumab; Antibodies, Monoclonal; Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; Biological Products; Cyclosporine; Dermatologic Agents; Forecasting; Fumarates; Humans; Infliximab; Nicotinic Acids; Psoriasis; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Type I; Tacrolimus; Tumor Necrosis Factor Decoy Receptors; Ustekinumab

Voclosporin (VCS, ISA247) is a novel calcineurin inhibitor being developed for organ transplantation. PROMISE was a 6-month, multicenter, randomized, open-label study of three ascending concentration-controlled groups of VCS (low, medium and high) compared to tacrolimus (TAC) in 334 low-risk renal transplant recipients. The primary endpoint was demonstration of noninferiority of biopsy proven acute rejection (BPAR) rates. Secondary objectives included renal function, new onset diabetes after transplantation (NODAT), hypertension, hyperlipidemia and pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic evaluation. The incidence of BPAR in the VCS groups (10.7%, 9.1% and 2.3%, respectively) was noninferior to TAC (5.8%). The incidence of NODAT for VCS was 1.6%, 5.7% and 17.7% versus 16.4% in TAC (low-dose VCS, p = 0.03). Nankivell estimated glomerular filtration rate was respectively: 71, 72, 68 and 69 mL/min, statistically lower in the high-dose group, p = 0.049. The incidence of hypertension and adverse events was not different between the VCS groups and TAC. VCS demonstrated an excellent correlation between trough and area under the curve (r(2) = 0.97) and no difference in mycophenolic acid exposure compared to TAC. This 6-month study shows VCS to be as efficacious as TAC in preventing acute rejection with similar renal function in the low- and medium-exposure groups, and potentially associated with a reduced incidence of NODAT.

Topics: Cardiovascular Diseases; Cyclosporine; Diabetes Complications; Female; Glomerular Filtration Rate; Graft Rejection; Graft Survival; Humans; Hypertension; Immunosuppressive Agents; Incidence; Kidney Failure, Chronic; Kidney Function Tests; Kidney Transplantation; Male; Middle Aged; Postoperative Complications; Survival Rate; Tacrolimus

Kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) are at increased risk for a more severe course of COVID-19, due to their pre-existing comorbidity and immunosuppression. Consensus protocols recommend lowering immunosuppression in KTRs with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, but the optimal combination remains unclear. Calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs) are cornerstone immunosuppressants used in KTRs and some have been reported to possess antiviral activity against RNA viruses, including coronaviruses. Here, we evaluated the effect of the CNIs tacrolimus, cyclosporin A, and voclosporin (VCS), as well as other immunosuppressants, on SARS-CoV-2 replication in cell-based assays. Unexpected, loss of compound due to plastic binding and interference of excipients in pharmaceutical formulations (false-positive results) complicated the determination of EC50 values of cyclophilin-dependent CNI's in our antiviral assays. Some issues could be circumvented by using exclusively glass lab ware with pure compounds. In these experiments, VCS reduced viral progeny yields in human Calu-3 cells at low micromolar concentrations and did so more effectively than cyclosporin A, tacrolimus or other immunosuppressants. Although, we cannot recommend a particular immunosuppressive regimen in KTRs with COVID-19, our data suggest a potential benefit of cyclophilin-dependent CNIs, in particular VCS in reducing viral progeny, which warrants further clinical evaluation in SARS-CoV-2-infected KTRs.

Topics: Antiviral Agents; Calcineurin Inhibitors; Cell Culture Techniques; COVID-19 Drug Treatment; Cyclophilins; Cyclosporine; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; SARS-CoV-2; Tacrolimus

The incidence of new onset diabetes after transplant (NODAT) has increased over the past decade, likely due to calcineurin inhibitor-based immunosuppressants, including tacrolimus (TAC) and cyclosporin. Voclosporin (VCS), a next-generation calcineurin inhibitor, is reported to cause fewer incidences of NODAT but the reason is unclear. While calcineurin signaling plays important roles in pancreatic β-cell survival, proliferation, and function, its effects on human β-cells remain understudied. In particular, we do not understand why some calcineurin inhibitors have more profound effects on the incidence of NODAT. We compared the effects of TAC and VCS on the dynamics of insulin secretory function, programmed cell death rate, and the transcriptomic profile of human islets. We studied 2 clinically relevant doses of TAC (10 ng/mL, 30 ng/mL) and VCS (20 ng/mL, 60 ng/mL), meant to approximate the clinical trough and peak concentrations. TAC, but not VCS, caused a significant impairment of 15 mM glucose-stimulated and 30 mM KCl-stimulated insulin secretion. This points to molecular defects in the distal stages of exocytosis after voltage-gated Ca2+ entry. No significant effects on islet cell survival or total insulin content were identified. RNA sequencing showed that TAC significantly decreased the expression of 17 genes, including direct and indirect regulators of exocytosis (SYT16, TBC1D30, PCK1, SMOC1, SYT5, PDK4, and CREM), whereas VCS has less broad, and milder, effects on gene expression. Clinically relevant doses of TAC, but not VCS, directly inhibit insulin secretion from human islets, likely via transcriptional control of exocytosis machinery.

Topics: Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; Cyclosporine; Glucose; Humans; Insulin; Insulin Secretion; Insulin-Secreting Cells; Islets of Langerhans; NFATC Transcription Factors; Phosphoric Monoester Hydrolases; Phosphorylation; Tacrolimus

Norovirus is a major cause of acute gastroenteritis worldwide and has emerged as an important issue of chronic infection in transplantation patients. Since no approved antiviral is available, we evaluated the effects of different immunosuppressants and ribavirin on norovirus and explored their mechanisms of action by using a human norovirus (HuNV) replicon-harboring model and a surrogate murine norovirus (MNV) infectious model. The roles of the corresponding drug targets were investigated by gain- or loss-of-function approaches. We found that the calcineurin inhibitors cyclosporine (CsA) and tacrolimus (FK506) moderately inhibited HuNV replication. Gene silencing of their cellular targets, cyclophilin A, FKBP12, and calcineurin, significantly inhibited HuNV replication. A low concentration, therapeutically speaking, of mycophenolic acid (MPA), an uncompetitive IMP dehydrogenase (IMPDH) inhibitor, potently and rapidly inhibited norovirus replication and ultimately cleared HuNV replicons without inducible resistance following long-term drug exposure. Knockdown of the MPA cellular targets IMPDH1 and IMPDH2 suppressed HuNV replication. Consistent with the nucleotide-synthesizing function of IMPDH, exogenous guanosine counteracted the antinorovirus effects of MPA. Furthermore, the competitive IMPDH inhibitor ribavirin efficiently inhibited norovirus and resulted in an additive effect when combined with immunosuppressants. The results from this study demonstrate that calcineurin phosphatase activity and IMPDH guanine synthase activity are crucial in sustaining norovirus infection; thus, they can be therapeutically targeted. Our results suggest that MPA shall be preferentially considered immunosuppressive medication for transplantation patients at risk of norovirus infection, whereas ribavirin represents as a potential antiviral for both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients with norovirus gastroenteritis.

Topics: Antiviral Agents; Calcineurin; Calcineurin Inhibitors; Caliciviridae Infections; Cell Line; Cyclosporine; Humans; Immunosuppressive Agents; IMP Dehydrogenase; Mycophenolic Acid; Norovirus; Ribavirin; Tacrolimus; Tacrolimus Binding Protein 1A; Virus Replication