Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program
Use of oral steroids is limited due to adverse side effects and most inflammatory bowel disease drugs are expensive biologics, which need to be intravenously administered. A reasonable percentage of patients do not respond to these drugs. There is a clear requirement for a cost effective, therapy for inflammatory bowel disease.
Professor Silvio Danese, who is leading Novapep's IBD program, has published papers showing the beneficial effects of APC in IBD. Professor Danese’ group undertook Biparetide studies in 2023 which demonstrated the anti-inflammatory effects exerted by Biparetide at multiple doses are comparable to those of anti-TNF⍺ (Humira) and are significantly more effective than prednisolone, and that Biparetide reduced body weight loss to a greater extent than anti-TNF⍺ and prednisolone.
Novapep and its partner the Florey Institute are developing Biparetide structures for systemic and oral administration.
Annual global sales of IBD drugs are approximately $22 billion. Immunomodulatory biologic drugs, which comprise the vast majority of sales, are expensive and are only effective in limited patient populations.