Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp (TNXP)

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Tonix Pharmaceuticals Announces IND Clearance for TNX-102 SL as a Potential Treatment for Long COVID Syndrome, Also Known as Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC)

Phase 2 Clinical Trial of TNX-102 SL for the Treatment of Long COVID Expected to Start Second Quarter 2022

Long COVID Afflicts More Than 30% of Patients Following Infection with SARS-CoV-2, the Virus that Causes COVID-19, and is Expected to be a Global Health Burden

CHATHAM, N.J., April 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: TNXP) (Tonix or the Company), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the Investigational New Drug (IND) application to support a Phase 2 clinical trial with TNX-102 SL1 as a potential treatment for a subset of patients with Long COVID Syndrome (Long COVID) whose symptoms overlap with fibromyalgia. Long COVID is now known officially as Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC2).

“We are excited to have received the FDA’s IND clearance to begin clinical trials of TNX-102 SL for the treatment of Long COVID,” said Seth Lederman, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Tonix Pharmaceuticals. “Over 30% of people who recover from COVID-19 continue to experience a constellation of symptoms long past the time that they have recovered from acute COVID-19 illness3-4. The symptoms of Long COVID, which can include fatigue, multi-site pain, sleep disturbances, fevers, shortness of breath, cognitive impairment, gastrointestinal symptoms, anxiety, and depression, can persist for many months and can range from mild to incapacitating5. Our study will focus on testing TNX-102 SL in the treatment of patients with multi-site pain associated with Long COVID. This group of patients have symptoms that overlap with other chronic pain conditions, which as a group have been termed, ‘chronic overlapping pain conditions.’6,7 This type of pain syndrome is increasingly recognized as nociplastic pain,8 and the underlying mechanism as ‘central sensitization.’9 Fibromyalgia is considered one of the chronic overlapping pain conditions and our experience with TNX-102 SL in fibromyalgia is the motivation for undertaking the development of TNX-102 SL in patients with Long COVID whose symptoms overlap with fibromyalgia.”

About the Phase 2 Study

This Phase 2 study will be a double-blind randomized, placebo-controlled 14-week trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of sublingual TNX-102 SL 5.6 mg daily at bedtime in the treatment of patients with multi-site pain associated with Long COVID. The trial will be conducted at approximately 30 sites to enroll approximately 470 patients (235 per arm) who will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to treatment with TNX-102 SL or placebo tablets. The primary efficacy endpoint will be Change from Baseline in the weekly average of daily self-reported worst pain intensity scores at the Week 14 endpoint. An interim analysis is expected to be completed after the first 50% of enrolled patients have completed the study for the purpose of possible sample size re-estimation.

About Long COVID or Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC)

Although most people recover from COVID-19 within weeks of the acute illness, a substantial portion develop a chronic syndrome called Long COVID. These individuals experience a constellation of disabling symptoms long past the time of recovery from acute COVID-19. Most Long COVID patients who have been studied appear to have cleared the SARS-CoV-2 infection from their systems. The symptoms of Long COVID can include fatigue, sleep disorders, multi-site pain, fevers, shortness of breath, cognitive impairment described as “brain fog” or memory disturbance, gastrointestinal symptoms, anxiety, and depression. Long COVID can persist for many months and can range in severity from mild to incapacitating. Several cohort studies have reported that persistence of symptoms following SARS-CoV-2 infection occurs in more than 30% of patients.3-5 While typically associated with moderate or severe COVID-19, Long COVID can occur after mild COVID-19 or even after asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. Patients with Long COVID are sometimes referred to as “long-haulers”. Long COVID is a chronic disabling condition that is expected to result in a significant global health and economic burden.10-13 In response to the urgent need for therapies that address Long COVID, Congress awarded $1.15 billion to the National Institutes of Health to study Long COVID in December 2020.14 While the vaccines available in the U.S. through either FDA approval or under Emergency Use Authorization have been shown to prevent acute COVID, their ability to prevent Long COVID is unknown. There is currently no approved drug for the treatment of Long COVID.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/tonix-pharmaceuticals-announces-ind-clearance-110000535.html