Intrommune Therapeutics, the biotech company developing a toothpaste-based immunotherapy for food allergies, announced positive results for their peanut allergy therapy at the annual AAAAI meeting this weekend.
INT301 is an investigational treatment for peanut allergy that delivers small quantities of allergenic proteins to the oral mucosa via a specially formulated toothpaste. Because the allergens are not ingested, Oral Mucosa Immunotherapy (OMIT) is anticipated to prove easier to administer with fewer adverse reactions than traditional oral immunotherapy (OIT).
It may also prove to be a more convenient method of maintenance following other immunotherapy treatments.
The data shows that there was a statistically significant increase in IgG4 and a decrease in IgE/IgG4 ratio consistent with an immunologic response, in active patients who failed an Oral Food Challenge (OFC) to ≤100 mg of peanut protein at study entry, but could tolerate ≥300 mg of peanut protein at the end of study after treatment. The results of this study suggest OMIT as a new approach for the management of food allergy, providing a strong foundation for further research in the pediatric population.
“Other than avoidance, there are very few options available to patients with peanut and other food allergies,” said William E. Berger, MD, a board-certified allergist and consultant to Intrommune. “The addition of OMIT as a new, safe and convenient option for both patients and physicians, marks an important advancement in the treatment of food allergies. I look forward to the continued development of this therapeutic toothpaste.”
