Longeveron Inc. (NASDAQ: LGVN) to Discuss Its Cell
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- Longeveron management will present at the 25th Annual H.C. Wainwright Global Investment Conference scheduled for September 11-13, 2023, in New York
- Wa’el Hashad, the company’s CEO, will discuss Longeveron’s cellular therapy programs in a pre-recorded presentation. Both he and Lisa Locklear, EVP & Chief Financial Officer, will be at the conference to discuss the company’s investment strategies and clinical trial progress
- The company aims to create awareness among scientists and investors of its clinical trial progress, positive clinical results, and cellular therapy programs
- Longeveron is evaluating its lead investigational product candidate, a cellular product named Lomecel-B(TM), in ongoing clinical trials
- The product candidate is being advanced as a potential treatment for hypoplastic left heart syndrome (“HLHS”), Aging-related Frailty, and Alzheimer’s disease
Longeveron (NASDAQ: LGVN), a clinical-stage company, is focused on developing cellular therapy primarily for conditions with a clear unmet medical need. The company is guided by the mission to advance cell-based product candidates into pivotal Phase 3 trials, with the goal of attaining regulatory approvals and subsequently commercializing the product.
Longeveron has so far made significant strides in line with this mission, progress that the company’s management will share during the 25th Annual H.C. Wainwright Global Investment Conference scheduled for September 11-13, 2023, in New York. On his part, Wa’el Hashad, the company’s CEO, will discuss Longeveron’s cellular therapy programs in a pre-recorded presentation. Both he and Lisa Locklear, Longeveron’s EVP & Chief Financial Officer, will attend the conference in person to discuss the company’s investment strategies and clinical trial progress (https://nnw.fm/qERP7 ).
The programs and clinical trials are currently anchored in the company’s lead investigational therapeutic candidate, a cellular therapy called Lomecel-B(TM). Lomecel-B is derived from culture-expanded medicinal signaling cells (“MSCs”) isolated from the bone marrow of healthy young adult donors (https://nnw.fm/Q97pq ). The drug candidate is undergoing evaluation – as part of three separate Phase 2 clinical trials – as a potential treatment for three indications: hypoplastic left heart syndrome (“HLHS”), Aging-related Frailty, and Alzheimer’s disease.
HLHS is a rare congenital heart condition that affects about 1,000 newborns every year in the United States. HLHS patients are born with a severely underdeveloped left ventricle, which is normally responsible for pumping oxygenated blood to the body. The condition is fatal shortly after birth if left untreated. Thus, to avert certain death, the babies undergo three heart surgeries (Stage I, Stage II, and Stage III), staggered over several years, which convert the heart into a functioning 3-chamber heart (instead of a normal 4-chamber heart). In the reconstructed heart, and after the Stage III surgery, the right ventricle entirely takes over the role of pumping oxygenated blood to the body.
Unfortunately, despite these efforts, HLHS babies still have high mortality and morbidity and often still require a heart transplant, mainly due to heart failure. The mortality risk for children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome is highest in the first year of life. For this reason, Longeveron is evaluating Lomecel-B’s potential to improve cardiac function when administered directly to the myocardium (heart muscles) at the time of Stage II surgery. The company completed its safety-focused open-label Phase 1 (“ELPIS I”) study evaluating Lomecel-B(TM) for the treatment of HLHS, reporting positive clinical results.
When cardiac surgeons injected the product directly into the babies’ hearts, the MSCs were well tolerated, with no significant adverse cardiac events and no infections related to the investigational treatment reported. Moreover, the study results showed a 100% survival rate up to 5 years after treatment, with no need for heart transplant, for the ten infants enrolled in the study. By comparison, historical data indicates an approximate 20% mortality rate over the same period of time (see “Other References” below).
The positive Phase 1 data led to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) granting Rare Pediatric Disease Designation (“RPDD”) (https://nnw.fm/BfWxF ), Orphan Drug Designation (“ODD”) (https://nnw.fm/qRbTS ), and Fast Track Designation (“FTD”) (https://nnw.fm/Swcgm ) for Lomecel-B(TM) for the treatment of HLHS.
Lomecel-B(TM) is currently being evaluated in a Phase 2 clinical trial (“ELPIS II”). A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial, ELPIS II is designed to evaluate Lomecel-B(TM) as an adjunct therapy to the standard-of-care Stage II HLHS heart reconstructive surgery. The primary endpoint is to assess whether the treatment improves heart function and improves survival compared to standard-of-care surgery alone. The trial has enrolled more than 50% of the 38 targeted subjects.
Longeveron is also conducting a Phase 2a trial (“CLEAR MIND”) to evaluate multiple doses of Lomecel-B(TM) in patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease. The primary objective of the trial is the safety and tolerability of single and multiple doses of Lomecel-B in patients with mild AD. The study will also evaluate the efficacy of single and multiple doses of Lomecel-B on disease progression in patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease. Longeveron expects the topline data results in October 2023.
Moreover, Longeveron has completed two studies (Phase 2b and a Phase 1/2a trial) in the United States. for the treatment of Aging-related Frailty. The company has also received regulatory approval in Japan, permitting an investigator-sponsored Phase 2 clinical trial for Aging-related Frailty. The Japan clinical trial is ongoing. Aging-related Frailty is a life-threatening geriatric condition that increases the risk of poor clinical outcomes from injury and disease. It does not have an approved treatment, representing an untapped opportunity for Longeveron. The company aims to work with regulatory agencies to advance Lomecel-B(TM) as potentially the first approved drug for Aging-related Frailty.
Looking ahead, Longeveron is looking to create awareness of these cellular therapy programs, the progress made with its clinical trials, and accompanying positive clinical data at conferences and scientific sessions. The upcoming investment conference provides an ideal setting as it brings together investors from all over the world.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Longeveron.com.
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