AstraZeneca/MedImmune's tralokinumab shows positive impact on pulmonary function in patients with uncontrolled asthma

The addition of tralokinumab to existing asthma controller medication resulted in an improvement in lung function, as measured by FEV1and FVC in subjects with moderate-to-severe uncontrolled asthma, according to results from a Phase IIa study to be presented at the European Respiratory Society’s Annual Congress 2011 in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on September 27.

Tralokinumab, an investigational human monoclonal antibody (MAb) that is designed to neutralize interleukin 13 (IL-13), is under development at Anglo-Swedish drug major AstraZeneca’s (LSE: AZN) US biologics subsidiary MedImmune. Tralokinumab treatment did not result in a statistically-significant reduction in the study’s primary end-point, ACQ-6 (Asthma Control Questionnaire) score, compared to placebo at week 13.

Tralokinumab is in a race with Roche/Genentech’s lebrikizumab to treat uncontrolled asthma by blocking interleukin 13, and MedImmune says that the new data support the continued development of its product.