Lisata Therapeutics Inc (LSTA)

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"Caladrius Biosciences Begins Enrollment of Second Cohort of Phase 2 Trial of CLBS03 as a Treatment for Type 1 Diabetes Following Favorable Safety Data from First Cohort


Earlier assessment of clinical safety permits acceleration of trial timeline

Sanford Research to Provide Operational Support at its Clinical Sites for Remainder of Trial


BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Oct. 31, 2016 -- Caladrius Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLBS) (“Caladrius” or the “Company”), a cell therapy company combining a unique, promising therapeutic development pipeline with an industry-leading development and manufacturing services provider through its subsidiary PCT, LLC a Caladrius Company™ (“PCT”), today announced that the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (“DSMB”) for its Phase 2, The Sanford Project: T-Rex Study recommended that the trial proceed with the enrollment of the prescribed second cohort of subjects in the study to meet the target of 111 total participants. The Company’s decision to resume enrollment ahead of the original timeline represents an acceleration of the program. The decision was made in consultation with external clinical advisors based on a favorable safety profile for the first cohort of 19 subjects who reached their 28-day post-treatment follow-up. Sanford Research, the Company’s collaborator for the study, has agreed to extend operational support at its participating clinical sites for the remainder of the Study. The study is evaluating CLBS03 (the Company’s product candidate consisting of autologous expanded regulatory T cells, or Tregs) as a treatment for recent-onset type 1 diabetes (T1D).

Caladrius has modified the T-Rex study protocol to allow for an earlier than planned resumption of enrollment for the remaining patients based on the DSMB recommendation after the 28-day, rather than three-month, evaluation of the first cohort.

Based on the earlier than originally expected recommencement of Study enrollment and the high interest from subjects and investigators in the Study experienced from the first cohort, the Company now expects to reach the important milestone of treating 50% of subjects by mid-2017. The results from a pre-specified interim analysis of early therapeutic effect for the Study triggered after approximately 50% of subjects reach the 6-month post-treatment follow-up visit is expected to be announced late 2017/early 2018. The enrollment of the 70th subject in the Study, expected to occur in mid-2017, will trigger an expected $8.4 million infusion of capital pursuant to the terms of the recently announced private placements of Caladrius common stock.

CLBS03 has received Fast Track and Orphan Drug designations from the FDA as well as Advanced Therapeutic Medicinal Product (ATMP) classification from the European Medicines Agency.

“We are delighted to have identified multiple means by which we can accelerate our timeline for the T-Rex study and to have achieved this positive assessment of clinical safety earlier than originally planned. These results augment the existing body of evidence supporting the notion that CLBS03 has a favorable safety profile,” said David J. Mazzo, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Caladrius. “We look forward to efficiently executing on the remainder of the T-Rex study, driving towards an understanding of CLBS03’s therapeutic effect in adolescents with recent-onset type 1 diabetes, starting with the planned interim analysis based upon a 6-month follow-up of ~50% of the targeted enrollment planned to occur late 2017 or early 2018.”

Sanford Research (“Sanford”), has extended the agreement with Caladrius to provide operational support for the T-Rex Study beyond the first cohort to the remainder of the study. Sanford will provide and cover the costs of its clinical performance sites. Sanford’s initial support resulted in the enrollment of most of the first cohort of subjects and its recent agreement to make a $5 million equity investment in Caladrius will contribute to the execution of the remainder of the Study. Sanford Research is a non-profit organization that is part of Sanford Health and supports an emerging translational research center focused on finding a cure for T1D, called the Sanford Project.

“Patients with type 1 diabetes benefit from having access to the newest and most innovative treatment options like cell therapy,” said David Pearce, Ph.D., executive vice president for Sanford Research. “Sanford understands how essential collaborations with organizations like Caladrius are to discovering those treatments and making them accessible to patients through clinical trials.”

About The Sanford Project: T-Rex Study

The landmark study, which is being conducted in collaboration with Sanford Research, a Sanford Health subsidiary, is a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CLBS03 as a treatment for T1D, in 111 subjects age 12 to 17 with recent-onset T1D. Subjects are randomized into one of three groups to receive, through a single administration, either a high dose of CLBS03, a low dose of CLBS03 or placebo. Enrollment of the first cohort of 19 subjects, designated for a preliminary safety evaluation, was completed in August 2016. The key endpoints for the trial are the standard medical and regulatory endpoints for a T1D trial and include preservation of C-peptide, an accepted measure for pancreatic beta cell function; insulin use; severe hypoglycemic episodes; and glucose and hemoglobin A1c levels. For more information on The Sanford Project: T-Rex Study, please visit https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02691247.";