Clearside Biomedical Announces Completion of Dosing in Cohort 2 of Phase 1/2a Clinical Trial of CLS-AX (axitinib injectable suspension) in Wet AMD Patients

ALPHARETTA, Ga., Sept. 21, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Clearside Biomedical, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSD), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and delivering treatments that restore and preserve vision for people with serious back of the eye diseases, announced today completion of dosing in Cohort 2 of OASIS, its ongoing Phase 1/2a clinical trial of CLS-AX (axitinib injectable suspension) in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD).

OASIS is a U.S.-based, multi-center, open-label, dose-escalation trial in wet AMD patients to assess the safety and tolerability of a single dose of CLS-AX administered by suprachoroidal injection. All Cohort 2 patients have received aflibercept at their first visit and a single dose of CLS-AX at their second visit one month later. The primary endpoint for the trial will assess the safety and tolerability of CLS-AX for three months following the administration of CLS-AX.

“We are pleased to have completed our enrollment and dosing of Cohort 2 patients after the promising safety and tolerability results from Cohort 1,” said Thomas A. Ciulla, M.D., MBA, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Development Officer. “All patients in Cohort 2 have now received both their aflibercept and CLS-AX doses and will be monitored monthly by their physicians for the next three months. We believe that by combining the pan-VEGF attributes of axitinib with our proprietary CLS-AX formulation and delivery via our SCS Microinjector^®, we may facilitate an effective treatment option for patients suffering from wet AMD. We expect to report initial safety data from Cohort 2 by the end of this year.”

About Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration (wet AMD)

Age-related macular degeneration causes a progressive loss of central vision and is the most common cause of legal blindness in individuals over age 55. Wet AMD is generally caused by abnormal blood vessels that leak fluid or blood into the macula, the part of the retina responsible for central vision, and accounts for the majority of vision loss in patients with this disorder. In the U.S., approximately 11 million patients are living with AMD, and about 20% have the wet form. Current treatments require life-long, frequent injections to maintain efficacy. This treatment regimen tends to cause a treatment burden for patients resulting in reduced compliance and under-treatment leading to potentially limited outcomes.

About CLS-AX (axitinib injectable suspension)

CLS-AX (axitinib injectable suspension) is a proprietary suspension of axitinib for suprachoroidal injection. Axitinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) currently approved to treat renal cell cancer that achieves pan-VEGF blockade, directly inhibiting VEGF receptors-1, -2, and -3 with high potency and specificity. Clearside believes this broad VEGF blockade may have efficacy advantages over existing retinal therapies by acting at a different level of the angiogenesis cascade, and may benefit patients who sub-optimally respond to current, more narrowly focused anti-VEGF therapies. Suprachoroidal injection of this proprietary suspension of axitinib has demonstrated meaningful potential in preclinical studies in multiple species. Preclinical results from Clearside and independent investigators have shown pharmacodynamic effects with reduced growth of experimental neovascularization and decreased fluorescein leakage. With suprachoroidal administration of axitinib, there is the potential to achieve prolonged duration and targeted delivery to affected tissue layers. Clearside is developing CLS-AX as a long-acting therapy for the treatment of wet AMD.

About the OASIS Phase 1/2a Clinical Trial

OASIS is an open-label, dose-escalation Phase 1/2a trial in wet AMD patients to assess the safety and tolerability of a single dose of CLS-AX administered by suprachoroidal injection via Clearside’s SCS Microinjector^®. Eligible patients are those who demonstrate stable visual acuity following two or more previous injections with an intravitreal anti-VEGF agent. All enrolled patients undergo diagnostic imaging on screening, followed by masked reading center confirmation of persistent active disease.

Enrolled patients initially receive aflibercept at the first visit followed by a single dose of CLS-AX at the second visit one month later. The primary endpoint for the trial will assess the safety and tolerability of CLS-AX for the three months following the administration of CLS-AX, and secondary endpoints will evaluate the pharmacokinetics, visual function, ocular anatomy, and the need for additional treatment with intravitreal aflibercept during the three-month period.

The study design is planned with 3 cohorts of approximately 5 patients each (n=15). Cohort 2 participants received a dose of 0.1 mg of axitinib delivered via suprachoroidal injection. Dose escalation will proceed following review of the Cohort 2 safety data by the Safety Monitoring Committee and their recommendation to advance to the next higher dose cohort. Additional information on the Phase 1/2a trial can be found on https://clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04626128).

About Clearside’s Suprachoroidal Space (SCS^®) Injection Platform and SCS Microinjector^®

Clearside’s patented, proprietary suprachoroidal space (SCS^®) injection treatment approach offers unprecedented access to the back of the eye where sight-threatening disease often occurs. The company’s unique platform is inherently flexible and intended to work with established and new formulations of medications. Clearside’s proprietary SCS Microinjector^® can be used to inject a wide variety of drug candidates that are specifically formulated to be delivered via suprachoroidal injection. The SCS Microinjector provides targeted delivery to potentially improve efficacy and compartmentalization of medication to reduce or eliminate toxic effects on non-diseased cells. The SCS Microinjector is composed of a syringe and two 30-gauge hollow microneedles of varying lengths, each less than 1.2 millimeters, within a custom-designed hub that optimizes insertion and suprachoroidal administration of drugs.

About Clearside Biomedical

Clearside Biomedical, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and delivering treatments that restore and preserve vision for people with serious back of the eye diseases. Clearside’s proprietary SCS Microinjector^® targets the suprachoroidal space (SCS^®) and offers unique access to the macula, retina and choroid where sight-threatening disease often occurs. The Company’s SCS injection platform is an inherently flexible, in-office, non-surgical procedure, intended to provide targeted delivery to the site of disease and to work with both established and new formulations of medications. For more information, please visit www.clearsidebio.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Any statements contained in this press release that do not describe historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by words such as “believe”, “expect”, “may”, “plan”, “potential”, “will”, and similar expressions, and are based on Clearside’s current beliefs and expectations. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding the clinical development, including the timing of safety data from the OASIS clinical trial, and the potential benefits, of CLS-AX and therapies using Clearside’s SCS Microinjector^®. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in such statements. Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially include uncertainties inherent in the conduct of clinical trials, Clearside’s reliance on third parties over which it may not always have full control, uncertainties regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and other risks and uncertainties that are described in Clearside’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 15, 2021, and Clearside’s other Periodic Reports filed with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and are based on information available to Clearside as of the date of this release, and Clearside assumes no obligation to, and does not intend to, update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Investor and Media Contacts:

Jenny Kobin
Remy Bernarda
ir@clearsidebio.com
(678) 430-8206

Source: Clearside Biomedical, Inc.