Imago BioSciences Doses First Patients in Phase 1/2 Study of IMG-7289 in Myelofibrosis

SAN CARLOS, Calif., Sept. 19, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Imago BioSciences, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for hematological and inflammatory diseases, announced today that the first patients have been dosed in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of IMG-7289 for the treatment of myelofibrosis (MF). IMG-7289 is an investigational therapeutic agent that suppresses the production of inflammatory cytokines that characterize myelofibrosis; IMG-7289 also impairs self-renewal and proliferation of neoplastic stem cells.

"Myelofibrosis remains a devastating and deadly disease, with an urgent need for therapies that alter disease progression and impact survival," said Hugh Young Rienhoff, Jr. M.D., Imago's Chief Executive Officer.  "By targeting an enzyme specifically regulating myeloid cell gene transcription, IMG-7289 has significant disease-modifying activities in multiple non-clinical models of myelofibrosis and thus offers the possibility to influence the natural history of this disease."

This clinical trial is designed to assess the safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of IMG-7289, an oral inhibitor of the epigenetic enzyme lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) in high-risk myelofibrosis patients aged 18 or older (www.clinicaltrials.gov Identifier NCT03136185).  Exploratory assessments include measuring changes in spleen size, mutant allele burden, cytokines and bone marrow fibrosis over the course of treatment.  The trial is being conducted at multiple sites in Australia.

This is the second ongoing clinical trial of IMG-7289 sponsored by Imago BioSciences, Inc.  The first, evaluating IMG-7289 for the treatment of high-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), initiated in 2016 (www.clinicaltrials.gov Identifier NCT02842827).

About IMG-7289

IMG-7289, an investigational agent currently being evaluated in ongoing clinical trials, is a small molecule developed by Imago BioSciences that inhibits lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1 or KDM1A), an enzyme regulating gene expression in hematopoietic cells.  In non-clinical models, the inhibition of LSD1 has been shown to limit self-renewal in neoplastic stem cells such as those in acute myeloid leukemia and myelofibrosis.  Across a range of myeloid malignancy models, IMG-7289 demonstrated robust in vivo activity as a single agent and in combination with other anti-neoplastic agents. 

About Imago BioSciences

Imago BioSciences is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, funded by Clarus Ventures, Frazier Healthcare Partners, Amgen Ventures, and Merck Research Laboratories Ventures Fund.  Imago is focused on discovering and developing novel anti-cancer therapeutics.  These include a range of hematologic malignancies including AML, MDS and the myeloproliferative neoplasms. The company is based in California with offices in Boston and Somerset, England.  

Please see the website at www.imagobio.com for additional information.

SOURCE Imago BioSciences