Sanofi and Teva's TL1A Inhibitor Shows Promise in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Sanofi and Teva have unveiled detailed phase 2 data for their co-developed anti-TL1A therapy, duvakitug, positioning the drug as a potential competitor to similar candidates from Merck & Co. and Roche in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Promising Results in Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease

The French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, which acquired rights to co-develop and co-commercialize duvakitug from Teva in a 469 million euro ($491 million) deal in 2023, presented the findings at the 20th Congress of the European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation. The data provide a more comprehensive look at the drug's performance in both ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease patients.

In ulcerative colitis, duvakitug demonstrated significant improvements in endoscopic outcomes after 14 weeks of treatment. The low and high doses of the drug achieved endoscopic improvement rates of 45% and 50%, respectively, compared to 23% in the placebo group. This translates to a placebo-adjusted rate of 27%, positioning duvakitug competitively among its rivals.

For Crohn's disease, the results were also encouraging, with higher endoscopic response rates observed in both treatment-naïve and experienced patients compared to placebo. Notably, the drug showed particular efficacy in patients who had previously tried advanced therapies, with placebo-adjusted rates ranging from 7% to 44% depending on the dose.

Competitive Landscape in IBD Treatment

The new data allow for a clearer comparison between duvakitug and its competitors in the anti-TL1A space. Roche's candidate, originally developed by Roivant, showed a 21% placebo-adjusted rate of endoscopic improvement after 12 weeks in ulcerative colitis. Meanwhile, Merck's prospect, acquired through the purchase of Prometheus Biosciences, achieved a 31% placebo-adjusted rate at the same time point.

These results suggest that Sanofi and Teva's duvakitug is well-positioned in the emerging field of TL1A inhibitors for IBD treatment. The drug's performance across both treatment-naïve and experienced patients is particularly noteworthy, as it indicates potential broad applicability in the IBD patient population.

Future Prospects and Market Potential

The positive phase 2 results are informing Sanofi and Teva's plans for phase 3 trials. Teva's Chief Medical Officer, Eric Hughes, M.D., Ph.D., recently disclosed that the partners have finalized the phase 3 design, which will be based on modeling and simulation from the phase 2 study.

Financial analysts at Leerink Partners have described duvakitug's profile as "exceptional" following the latest data release. They project that the drug could generate sales of 1 billion euros ($1.05 billion) for Sanofi by 2032, underscoring the significant market potential for effective IBD treatments.

As Sanofi and Teva move forward with late-stage development of duvakitug, the pharmaceutical industry will be watching closely to see how this promising TL1A inhibitor fares against its competitors in the race to bring new, effective treatments to patients with inflammatory bowel disease.