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Weiss MD, Freimer M, Leite MI, Maniaol A, Utsugisawa K, Bloemers J, Boroojerdi B, Howard E, Savic N, Howard JF. Improvement of fatigue in generalised myasthenia gravis with zilucoplan. J Neurol 2024; 271:2758-2767. [PMID: 38400914 PMCID: PMC11055786 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-024-12209-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fatigue is a debilitating symptom of myasthenia gravis (MG). The impact of fatigue on MG can be assessed by Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders (Neuro-QoL) Short Form Fatigue scale. Transformation of raw Neuro-QoL fatigue scores to T-scores is a known approach for facilitating clinical interpretation of clinically meaningful and fatigue severity thresholds. METHODS In the Phase 3, double-blind, placebo-controlled RAISE study (NCT04115293), adults with acetylcholine receptor autoantibody-positive generalised MG (MG Foundation of America Disease Class II-IV) were randomised 1:1 to daily subcutaneous zilucoplan 0.3 mg/kg or placebo for 12 weeks. Patients completing RAISE could opt to receive zilucoplan 0.3 mg/kg in an ongoing, open-label extension study, RAISE-XT (NCT04225871). In this post-hoc analysis, we evaluated the long-term effect of zilucoplan on fatigue in RAISE patients who entered RAISE-XT. We report change in Neuro-QoL Short Form Fatigue T-scores and fatigue severity levels from RAISE baseline to Week 60. RESULTS Mean Neuro-QoL Short Form Fatigue T-scores improved from baseline to Week 12 in the zilucoplan group (n = 86) with a clinically meaningful difference versus placebo (n = 88; least squares mean difference: - 3.61 (nominal p-value = 0.0060]), and these improvements continued further to Week 60. At Week 12, more patients on zilucoplan (n = 34, 47.2%) experienced improvements in ≥ 1 fatigue severity level from baseline versus placebo (n = 23, 28.4%; p = 0.017). At Week 60, most (n = 55, 65.5%) patients had mild fatigue or none. CONCLUSION Treatment with zilucoplan demonstrated statistical and clinically meaningful improvements in fatigue scores and severity versus placebo during RAISE, which were sustained to Week 60 in RAISE-XT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael D Weiss
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Miriam Freimer
- Department of Neurology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - M Isabel Leite
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | | | | | | | - Emily Howard
- UCB Pharma, Slough, UK
- Cogent Skills, Warrington, UK
- University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | | | - James F Howard
- Department of Neurology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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2
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Howard JF, Bresch S, Farmakidis C, Freimer M, Genge A, Hewamadduma C, Hinton J, Hussain Y, Juntas-Morales R, Kaminski HJ, Maniaol A, Mantegazza R, Masuda M, Nowak RJ, Sivakumar K, Śmiłowski M, Utsugisawa K, Vu T, Weiss MD, Zajda M, Bloemers J, Boroojerdi B, Brock M, de la Borderie G, Duda PW, Vanderkelen M, Leite MI. Long-term safety and efficacy of zilucoplan in patients with generalized myasthenia gravis: interim analysis of the RAISE-XT open-label extension study. Ther Adv Neurol Disord 2024; 17:17562864241243186. [PMID: 38638673 PMCID: PMC11025429 DOI: 10.1177/17562864241243186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Generalized myasthenia gravis (gMG) is a chronic, unpredictable disease associated with high treatment and disease burdens, with a need for more effective and well-tolerated treatments. Objectives To evaluate the long-term safety, tolerability, and efficacy of zilucoplan in a mild-to-severe, acetylcholine receptor autoantibody-positive (AChR+) gMG population. Design Ongoing, multicenter, phase III open-label extension (OLE) study. Methods Eligible patients had completed a qualifying randomized, placebo-controlled phase II or phase III zilucoplan study and received daily, self-administered subcutaneous 0.3 mg/kg zilucoplan. The primary endpoint was incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs). Secondary efficacy endpoints included change from baseline in Myasthenia Gravis Activities of Daily Living (MG-ADL) score. Results In total, 200 patients enrolled. At the cut-off date (8 September 2022), median (range) exposure to zilucoplan in RAISE-XT was 1.2 (0.11-4.45) years. Mean age at OLE baseline was 53.3 years. A total of 188 (94%) patients experienced a TEAE, with the most common being MG worsening (n = 52, 26%) and COVID-19 (n = 49, 25%). In patients who received zilucoplan 0.3 mg/kg in the parent study, further improvements in MG-ADL score continued through to Week 24 (least squares mean change [95% confidence interval] from double-blind baseline -6.06 [-7.09, -5.03]) and were sustained through to Week 60 (-6.04 [-7.21, -4.87]). In patients who switched from placebo in the parent study, rapid improvements in MG-ADL score were observed at the first week after switching to zilucoplan; further improvements were observed at Week 24, 12 weeks after switching (-6.46 [-8.19, -4.72]), and were sustained through to Week 60 (-6.51 [-8.37, -4.65]). Consistent results were observed in other efficacy endpoints. Conclusion Zilucoplan demonstrated a favorable long-term safety profile, good tolerability, and sustained efficacy through to Week 60 with consistent benefits in a broad AChR+ gMG population. Additional long-term data will be available in future analyses. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04225871 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04225871).
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Affiliation(s)
- James F. Howard
- Department of Neurology, UNC School of Medicine, The University College of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2200 Houpt Building, CB#7025, 170 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7025, USA
| | - Saskia Bresch
- Service de Neurologie, Hospital Pasteur, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Nice, France
| | - Constantine Farmakidis
- Neuromuscular Division, Department of Neurology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA
| | - Miriam Freimer
- Department of Neurology, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Angela Genge
- Clinical Research Unit, Montreal Neurological Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Channa Hewamadduma
- Academic Neuroscience Unit, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neurosciences (SITRAN), University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - John Hinton
- Department of Neurology, Frederick P. Whiddon School of Medicine, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA
| | - Yessar Hussain
- Department of Neurology, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Raul Juntas-Morales
- Department of Neurology, Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Henry J. Kaminski
- Department of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | | | - Renato Mantegazza
- Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, Istituto Nazionale Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | - Masayuki Masuda
- Department of Neurology, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Richard J. Nowak
- Department of Neurology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | | | - Marek Śmiłowski
- Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
| | | | - Tuan Vu
- Department of Neurology, University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Michael D. Weiss
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Małgorzata Zajda
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - M. Isabel Leite
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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Barton ME, Byrnes W, Mesa IR, Bloemers J, Maguire RP, Bouw R, Tesseur I, Ewen C, Scheltens P. Design of a patient‐ and investigator‐blind, randomized, placebo‐controlled study to evaluate efficacy, safety, and tolerability of bepranemab, UCB0107, in prodromal to mild Alzheimer’s disease: The TOGETHER Study, AH0003. Alzheimers Dement 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/alz.057586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Philip Scheltens
- Alzheimer Center Amsterdam University Medical Center Amsterdam Amsterdam Netherlands
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Kessels R, Moerbeek M, Bloemers J, van der Heijden PGM. A multilevel structural equation model for assessing a drug effect on a patient-reported outcome measure in on-demand medication data. Biom J 2021; 63:1652-1672. [PMID: 34270801 PMCID: PMC9292391 DOI: 10.1002/bimj.202100046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Revised: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
We analyze data from a clinical trial investigating the effect of an on-demand drug for women with low sexual desire. These data consist of a varying number of measurements/events across patients of when the drug was taken, including data on a patient-reported outcome consisting of five items measuring an unobserved construct (latent variable). Traditionally, these data are aggregated prior to analysis by composing one sum score per event and averaging this sum score over all observed events. In this paper, we explain the drawbacks of this aggregating approach. One drawback is that these averages have different standard errors because the variance of the underlying events differs between patients and because the number of events per patient differs. Another drawback is the implicit assumption that all items have equal weight in relation to the latent variable being measured. We propose a multilevel structural equation model, treating the events (level 1) as nested observations within patients (level 2), as alternative analysis method to overcome these drawbacks. The model we apply includes a factor model measuring a latent variable at the level of the event and at the level of the patient. Then, in the same model, the latent variables are regressed on covariates to assess the drug effect. We discuss the inferences obtained about the efficacy of the on-demand drug using our proposed model. We further illustrate how to test for measurement invariance across grouping covariates and levels using the same model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rob Kessels
- Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands.,Department of Biometrics, Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mirjam Moerbeek
- Department of Methodology and Statistics, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jos Bloemers
- Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands.,Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Peter G M van der Heijden
- Department of Methodology and Statistics, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Department of Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
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5
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Höhle D, van Rooij K, Bloemers J, Pfaus JG, Michiels F, Janssen P, Claassen E, Tuiten A. A survival of the fittest strategy for the selection of genotypes by which drug responders and non-responders can be predicted in small groups. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0246828. [PMID: 33667227 PMCID: PMC7935233 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0246828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotype Prediction Scores (PPS) might be powerful tools to predict traits or the efficacy of treatments based on combinations of Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNPs) in large samples. We developed a novel method to produce PPS models for small samples sizes. The set of SNPs is first filtered on those known to be relevant in biological pathways involved in a clinical condition, and then further filtered repeatedly in a survival strategy to select stabile positive/negative risk alleles. This method is applied on Female Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder (FSIAD), for which two subtypes has been proposed: 1) a relatively insensitive excitatory system in the brain for sexual cues, and 2) a dysfunctional activation of brain mechanisms for sexual inhibition. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over experiment was conducted on 129 women with FSIAD. The women received three different on-demand drug-combination treatments during 3 two-week periods: testosterone (0.5 mg) + sildenafil (50 mg), testosterone (0.5 mg) + buspirone (10 mg), or matching placebos. The resulted PPS were independently validated on patient-level and group-level. The AUC scores for T+S of the derivation set was 0.867 (95% CI = 0.796-0.939; p<0.001) and was 0.890 (95% CI = 0.778-1.000; p<0.001) on the validation set. For T+B the AUC of the derivation set was 0.957 (95% CI = 0.921-0.992; p<0.001) and 0.869 (95% CI = 0.746-0.992; p<0.001) for the validation set. Both formulas could reliably predict for each drug who benefit from the on-demand drugs and could therefore be useful in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kim van Rooij
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands
- Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jos Bloemers
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands
- Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - James G Pfaus
- Centro de Investigaciones Cerebrales, Xalapa, Mexico
| | - Frits Michiels
- Chemistry and Life Sciences, V.O. Patients & Trademarks, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Paddy Janssen
- Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Toxicology, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Department of Hospital Pharmacy, VieCuri Medical Center Venlo, Venlo, The Netherlands
| | - Eric Claassen
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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6
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Tuiten A, Michiels F, Böcker KB, Höhle D, van Honk J, de Lange RP, van Rooij K, Kessels R, Bloemers J, Gerritsen J, Janssen P, de Leede L, Meyer JJ, Everaerd W, Frijlink HW, Koppeschaar HP, Olivier B, Pfaus JG. Genotype scores predict drug efficacy in subtypes of female sexual interest/arousal disorder: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over trial. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 14:1745506518788970. [PMID: 30016917 PMCID: PMC6052493 DOI: 10.1177/1745506518788970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Attempts to develop a drug treatment for female sexual interest/arousal disorder
have so far been guided by the principle of ‘one size fits all’, and have failed
to acknowledge the complexity of female sexuality. Guided by personalized
medicine, we designed two on-demand drugs targeting two distinct hypothesized
causal mechanisms for this sexual disorder. The objective of this study was to
design and test a novel procedure, based on genotyping, that predicts which of
the two on-demand drugs will yield a positive treatment response. In a
double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled cross-over experiment, 139 women
with female sexual interest/arousal disorder received three different on-demand
drug-combination treatments during three 2-week periods: testosterone
0.5 mg + sildenafil 50 mg, testosterone 0.5 mg + buspirone 10 mg, and matching
placebo. The primary endpoint was change in satisfactory sexual events.
Subjects’ genetic profile was assessed using a microarray chip that measures
300,000 single-nucleotide polymorphisms. A preselection of single-nucleotide
polymorphisms associated with genes that are shown to be involved in sexual
behaviour were combined into a Phenotype Prediction Score. The Phenotype
Prediction Score demarcation formula was developed and subsequently validated on
separate data sets. Prediction of drug-responders with the Phenotype Prediction
Score demarcation formula gave large effect sizes (d = 0.66 through 1.06) in the
true drug-responders, and medium effect sizes (d = 0.51 and d = 0.47) in all
patients (including identified double, and non-responders). Accuracy,
sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive
value of the Phenotype Prediction Score demarcation formula were all between
0.78 and 0.79, and thus sufficient. The resulting Phenotype Prediction Score was
validated and shown to effectively and reliably predict which women would
benefit from which on-demand drug, and could therefore also be useful in
clinical practice, as a companion diagnostic establishing the way to a true
personalized medicine approach.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Frits Michiels
- 2 Chemistry and Life Sciences, V.O. Patients & Trademarks, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Daniël Höhle
- 3 Alan Turing Institute Almere, Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jack van Honk
- 4 Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,5 Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine (IDM), University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.,6 Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | - Kim van Rooij
- 1 Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands.,7 Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Rob Kessels
- 1 Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jos Bloemers
- 1 Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands.,7 Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jeroen Gerritsen
- 1 Emotional Brain BV, Almere, The Netherlands.,7 Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Paddy Janssen
- 8 Division of Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,9 Department of Central Hospital Pharmacy, Viecuri Hospital, Venlo, The Netherlands
| | - Leo de Leede
- 10 Exelion Bio-Pharmaceutical Consultancy B.V., Waddinxveen, The Netherlands
| | - John-Jules Meyer
- 3 Alan Turing Institute Almere, Almere, The Netherlands.,11 Department of Information and Computing Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Walter Everaerd
- 12 Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Henderik W Frijlink
- 13 Research Group of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherland
| | | | - Berend Olivier
- 7 Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,14 Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.,15 Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - James G Pfaus
- 16 Department of Psychology, Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada
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Tuiten A, van Rooij K, Bloemers J, Eisenegger C, van Honk J, Kessels R, Kingsberg S, Derogatis L, de Heede L, Gerritsen J, Koppeschaar H, Olivier B, Everaerd W, Frijlink H, Höhle D. 167 Efficacy and safety of on-demand use of 2 treatments designed for different etiologies of female sexual interest/arousal disorder: 3 randomized clinical trials. J Sex Med 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.04.166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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van Nes Y, Bloemers J, Kessels R, van der Heijden PG, van Rooij K, Gerritsen J, DeRogatis L, Tuiten A. Psychometric Properties of the Sexual Event Diary in a Sample of Dutch Women With Female Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder. J Sex Med 2018; 15:722-731. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2018.03.082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2017] [Revised: 03/16/2018] [Accepted: 03/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Tuiten A, van Rooij K, Bloemers J, Eisenegger C, van Honk J, Kessels R, Kingsberg S, Derogatis LR, de Leede L, Gerritsen J, Koppeschaar HP, Olivier B, Everaerd W, Frijlink HW, Höhle D, de Lange RP, Böcker KB, Pfaus JG. Efficacy and Safety of On-Demand Use of 2 Treatments Designed for Different Etiologies of Female Sexual Interest/Arousal Disorder: 3 Randomized Clinical Trials. J Sex Med 2018; 15:201-216. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2017.11.226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Revised: 11/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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Abstract
The placebo serves as an indispensable control in many randomized trials. When analyzing the benefit of a new treatment, researchers are often confronted with large placebo effects that diminish the treatment effect. Various alternative methods have been proposed for analyzing placebo and treatment effects in studies where large placebo effects are expected or have already occurred. This paper presents an overview of methodological work that has been proposed for assessing and/or controlling for placebo effects in randomized trials. Throughout this paper, two main approaches are discussed. The first approach considers designs that represent alternatives to the classical placebo-controlled randomized trial design. Separately, the second approach considers adopting new methods for the statistical analysis of placebo and treatment effects to be implemented after the data have been collected using a classical randomized trial design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rob Kessels
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, the Netherlands
| | - Reagan Mozer
- Department of Statistics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jos Bloemers
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, the Netherlands
- Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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11
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van Nes Y, Bloemers J, van der Heijden PG, van Rooij K, Gerritsen J, Kessels R, DeRogatis L, Tuiten A. The Sexual Event Diary (SED): Development and Validation of a Standardized Questionnaire for Assessing Female Sexual Functioning During Discrete Sexual Events. J Sex Med 2017; 14:1438-1450. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2017.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2017] [Revised: 07/24/2017] [Accepted: 09/09/2017] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Bloemers J, van Rooij K, de Leede L, Frijlink HW, Koppeschaar HPF, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Single dose sublingual testosterone and oral sildenafil vs. a dual route/dual release fixed dose combination tablet: a pharmacokinetic comparison. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2016; 81:1091-102. [PMID: 26804967 DOI: 10.1111/bcp.12887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2015] [Revised: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 01/21/2016] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
AIM The aim was to compare the pharmacokinetic profiles of two formulations of a combination drug product containing 0.5 mg testosterone and 50 mg sildenafil for female sexual interest/arousal disorder. The prototype (formulation 1) consists of a testosterone solution for sublingual administration and a sildenafil tablet that is administered 2.5 h later. The dual route/dual release fixed dose combination tablet (formulation 2) employs a sublingual and an oral route for systemic uptake. This tablet has an inner core of sildenafil with a polymeric time delay coating and an outer polymeric coating containing testosterone. It was designed to increase dosing practicality and decrease potential temporal non-adherence through circumventing the relatively complex temporal dosing scheme. METHODS Twelve healthy premenopausal subjects received both formulations randomly on separate days. Blood was sampled frequently to determine the pharmacokinetics of free testosterone, total testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, sildenafil and N-desmethyl-sildenafil. RESULTS Formulation 2 had a higher maximum concentration (Cmax ) for testosterone, 8.06 ng ml(-1) (95% confidence interval [CI] 6.84, 9.28) and higher area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC), 7.69 ng ml(-1) h (95% CI 6.22, 9.16) than formulation 1, 5.66 ng ml(-1) (95% CI 4.63, 6.69) and 5.12 ng ml(-1) h (95% CI 4.51, 5.73), respectively. Formulation 2 had a lower Cmax for sildenafil, 173 ng ml(-1) (95% CI 126, 220) and a lower AUC, 476 ng ml(-1) h (95% CI 401, 551) than formulation 1, 268 ng ml(-1) (95% CI 188, 348) and 577 ng ml(-1) h (95% CI 462, 692), respectively. Formulation 2 released sildenafil after 2.75 h (95% CI 2.40, 3.10). CONCLUSIONS The dual route/dual release fixed dose combination tablet fulfilled its design criteria and is considered suitable for further clinical testing. WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS SUBJECT Female sexual interest/arousal disorder (FSIAD) is a significant problem impacting psychological well-being, but the pharmacotherapeutic options for this problem are lacking. The combined, on-demand, sublingual administration of low dose sublingual testosterone and oral administration of sildenafil is a novel pharmacotherapeutic option under development for FSIAD. In proof-of-concept trials, these compounds were successfully administered via different dosage forms (sublingual and oral) at different time points (separated by 2.5 h) because of their markedly different pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic profiles. For future larger scale studies and the clinical practice, this raises obvious adherence issues. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS A newly developed dual route/dual release fixed dose combination tablet containing testosterone and sildenafil mimics the pharmacokinetic profile of these components when they are administered as different dosage forms, 2.5 h apart. This combination tablet is a suitable final pharmaceutical drug product that will be used in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jos Bloemers
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere.,Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht
| | - Kim van Rooij
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere.,Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht
| | - Leo de Leede
- Exelion Bio-Pharmaceutical Consultancy B.V., Waddinxveen
| | - Henderik W Frijlink
- Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Berend Olivier
- Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht.,Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Adriaan Tuiten
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere.,Department of Psychopharmacology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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van Rooij K, Poels S, Worst P, Bloemers J, Koppeschaar H, Goldstein A, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Efficacy of testosterone combined with a PDE5 inhibitor and testosterone combined with a serotonin (1A) receptor agonist in women with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction. A preliminary study. Eur J Pharmacol 2014; 753:246-51. [PMID: 25460030 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2014.10.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2014] [Accepted: 10/16/2014] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are known to cause sexual dysfunction, such as decreased sexual motivation, desire, arousal, and orgasm difficulties. These SSRI-induced sexual complaints have a high prevalence rate, while there is no approved pharmacological treatment for SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction. It is hypothesized that a polymorphisms in the androgen receptor gene, encoded by the nucleotides cysteine, adenine, and guanine (CAG), influence the effect of testosterone on sexual functioning. In an explorative, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study we investigated the possible effects of sublingual testosterone combined with a serotonin (5-HT)1A receptor agonist, and of sublingual testosterone combined with a phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor (PDE5-i) on sexual functioning in women with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction. Furthermore, we did an exploratory analysis to assess if the CAG polymorphism influences this effect. 21 pre- and postmenopausal women with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction participated and underwent the following interventions: a combination of testosterone (0.5 mg) sublingually and the PDE5-i sildenafil (50 mg) and a combination of testosterone (0.5 mg) sublingually and the 5-HT1A receptor agonist buspirone (10 mg). The results show that women who use a low dose of SSRI and have relatively long CAG repeats report a marked improvement in sexual function in response to both treatments compared to placebo. This explorative study and preliminary results indicate that in women with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction, a combination of testosterone sublingually and a PDE5-i or testosterone sublingually and a 5-HT1A receptor agonist might be promising treatments for certain subgroups of women with this condition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kim van Rooij
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands; Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudlof Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Saskia Poels
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands; Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudlof Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Petra Worst
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jos Bloemers
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands; Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudlof Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Berend Olivier
- Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Rudlof Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Adriaan Tuiten
- Emotional Brain B.V., Almere, The Netherlands; Department of Psychopharmacology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Tuiten A, Bloemers J, van Rooij K, Poels S, Gerritsen J, van Ham D, de Leede L, Everaerd W. Response to “Toward Personalized Sexual Medicine: Where is the Evidence?”. J Sex Med 2014; 11:2359-63. [DOI: 10.1111/jsm.12644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Poels S, Bloemers J, van Rooij K, Koppeschaar H, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Two novel combined drug treatments for women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2014; 121:71-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2014.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2013] [Revised: 02/03/2014] [Accepted: 02/05/2014] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
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Bloemers J, Scholte HS, van Rooij K, Goldstein I, Gerritsen J, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Reduced Gray Matter Volume and Increased White Matter Fractional Anisotropy in Women with Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder. J Sex Med 2014; 11:753-67. [DOI: 10.1111/jsm.12410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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Poels S, Bloemers J, van Rooij K, Goldstein I, Gerritsen J, van Ham D, van Mameren F, Chivers M, Everaerd W, Koppeschaar H, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Toward Personalized Sexual Medicine (Part 2): Testosterone Combined with a PDE5 Inhibitor Increases Sexual Satisfaction in Women with HSDD and FSAD, and a Low Sensitive System for Sexual Cues. J Sex Med 2013; 10:810-23. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2012.02983.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
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van Rooij K, Poels S, Bloemers J, Goldstein I, Gerritsen J, van Ham D, van Mameren F, Chivers M, Everaerd W, Koppeschaar H, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Toward Personalized Sexual Medicine (Part 3): Testosterone Combined with a Serotonin1A Receptor Agonist Increases Sexual Satisfaction in Women with HSDD and FSAD, and Dysfunctional Activation of Sexual Inhibitory Mechanisms. J Sex Med 2013; 10:824-37. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2012.02982.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Bloemers J, van Rooij K, Poels S, Goldstein I, Everaerd W, Koppeschaar H, Chivers M, Gerritsen J, van Ham D, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Toward Personalized Sexual Medicine (Part 1): Integrating the “Dual Control Model” into Differential Drug Treatments for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder and Female Sexual Arousal Disorder. J Sex Med 2013; 10:791-809. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2012.02984.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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van Rooij K, Bloemers J, de Leede L, Goldstein I, Lentjes E, Koppeschaar H, Olivier B, Tuiten A. Pharmacokinetics of three doses of sublingual testosterone in healthy premenopausal women. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2012; 37:773-81. [PMID: 21982723 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2011] [Revised: 09/07/2011] [Accepted: 09/11/2011] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Sublingual testosterone is a single-dose treatment often used in studies regarding social, cognitive and sexual behavior. It is hypothesized that an increase in the ratio of free to total testosterone (free fraction) is indirectly, via genomic effects, responsible for the behavioral effects after sublingual testosterone administration. OBJECTIVE To characterize the pharmacokinetics of three doses sublingual testosterone in premenopausal women. Also, to investigate the SHBG saturation threshold influencing the free level and free fraction of testosterone. DESIGN We conducted an investigator-blind, randomized, cross-over placebo controlled study. SETTING This study was undertaken at the research and development department of a scientific company for research regarding female sexual dysfunction. PARTICIPANTS 16 healthy premenopausal women (mean age 27.3±5.3 years). INTERVENTIONS Sublingual testosterone solution; 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75 mg. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURE The pharmacokinetics of three single doses sublingual testosterone solution; the influence of SHBG levels on free and total levels of testosterone. RESULTS After sublingual testosterone administration, serum free and total testosterone levels peaked at 15 min and reached baseline levels within 150 min. The AUCs and C(max) of free and total testosterone differed significantly between the three doses (p<0.0001) and increased dose-dependently. A dose-dependent increase in free fraction of testosterone was found in women with low SHBG levels, but not in women with high SHBG levels. CONCLUSIONS The three doses sublingual testosterone are rapidly absorbed and quickly metabolized in premenopausal women. These data demonstrate the influence of SHBG levels on the treatment induced alterations in plasma free testosterone.
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Bloemers J, Gerritsen J, Bults R, Koppeschaar H, Everaerd W, Olivier B, Tuiten A. ORIGINAL RESEARCH—ANATOMY/PHYSIOLOGY: Induction of Sexual Arousal in Women Under Conditions of Institutional and Ambulatory Laboratory Circumstances: A Comparative Study. J Sex Med 2010; 7:1160-76. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01660.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Gerritsen J, Van Der Made F, Bloemers J, Van Ham D, Kleiverda G, Everaerd W, Olivier B, Levin R, Tuiten A. The Clitoral Photoplethysmograph: A New Way of Assessing Genital Arousal in Women. J Sex Med 2009; 6:1678-1687. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01228.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Van Der Made F, Bloemers J, Yassem WE, Kleiverda G, Everaerd W, Van Ham D, Olivier B, Koppeschaar H, Tuiten A. The Influence of Testosterone Combined with a PDE5-inhibitor on Cognitive, Affective, and Physiological Sexual Functioning in Women Suffering from Sexual Dysfunction. J Sex Med 2009; 6:777-90. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2008.01142.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Van Der Made F, Bloemers J, Van Ham D, Yassem WE, Kleiverda G, Everaerd W, Olivier B, Tuiten A. ORIGINAL RESEARCH—ANATOMY/PHYSIOLOGY: Childhood Sexual Abuse, Selective Attention for Sexual Cues and the Effects of Testosterone with or without Vardenafil on Physiological Sexual Arousal in Women with Sexual Dysfunction: A Pilot Study. J Sex Med 2009; 6:429-39. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2008.01103.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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