Destiny Pharma reports positive secondary data on 'XF-73'

Clinical-stage biotechnology company Destiny Pharma announced additional, “strong” data from its recent phase 2b clinical trial on Monday.

The AIM-traded firm had announced in March that the study met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a highly significant reduction in nasal Staphylococcus aureus immediately prior to surgery, compared to placebo, after 24 hours of XF-73 nasal gel dosing.

It said the additional data showed that XF-73 dosed patients could also benefit from a sustained bacterial reduction at the three post-surgical sample time points after wound closure of one hour, two days and six days, demonstrating 2.5 log, 2.4 log and 2.8 log reductions, respectively, and sustaining the drop of over 99% in S. aureus nasal burden.

The placebo-treated patients reported 0.4 log, 1.5 log and 2.5 log reductions at the same time points.

Destiny said the bacterial reductions in XF-73 treated patients were shown to be “highly statistically significant” over placebo at the one hour and two days post-surgery timepoints.

As a result of the antibiotic dosing used as standard of care, the six-day time point reduction in the placebo group was equivalent to the XF-73 arm, which was expected as it was known that pre- and post-surgical systemic anti-staphylococcal antibiotic dosing elicits a slow, gradual reduction in nasal bacterial carriage.

The sustained nasal microbiological effect in the period of greatest risk, being pre-surgery to wound healing, of XF-73 in patients was described by the company as a “desirable attribute” for the reduction in the risk of acquiring a post-surgical, staphylococcal infection.

Destiny said the new data demonstrated that XF-73 nasal gel had the potential to keep patients at a significantly low S. aureus nasal burden during the period of highest infection risk, which runs from one hour prior to incision, during surgery itself, to the start of wound healing and out to at least six days post-surgery.

“We are very pleased to announce this additional, positive data from the successful phase 2b study of XF-73 as a novel drug to reduce the incidence of post-surgical infections such as MRSA,” said chief executive officer Neil Clark.

“We are having discussions with regulators in the United States and Europe to enable us to design the required Phase 3 clinical study and will announce further updates later in 2021.”

Clark said XF-73 had “great potential” to provide a “safe, fast acting medicine” that kills S. aureus in the nose prior to surgery, reducing patient infections while not generating bacterial resistance.

“There is a clear clinical need for such a new medicine that helps prevent post-surgical infections and there is a significant commercial opportunity.”

At 1021 BST, shares in Destiny Pharma were up 4.42% at 118p.