FDA Grants Reata Priority Review for Friedreich’s Ataxia Therapy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Reata Pharmaceuticals Priority Review of its New Drug Application for omaveloxolone for the treatment of patients with the rare degenerative neuromuscular disorder Friedreich’s ataxia.

Patients with Friedreich’s ataxia typically experience symptoms in childhood, including progressive loss of coordination, muscle weakness, and fatigue that commonly results in motor incapacitation with patients requiring a wheelchair in their 20s. Patients with Friedreich’s ataxia may also experience visual impairment, hearing loss, diabetes, and cardiomyopathy. On average, patients with Friedreich’s ataxia die in their mid-30s. Currently, there are no approved therapies for the treatment of Friedreich’s ataxia.

Omaveloxolone is an experimental, oral, once-daily activator of Nrf2, a transcription factor that induces molecular pathways that promote the resolution of inflammation by restoring mitochondrial function, reducing oxidative stress, and inhibiting pro-inflammatory signaling. The FDA has granted Orphan Drug, Fast Track, and Rare Pediatric Disease designations to omaveloxolone for the treatment of Friedreich’s ataxia. The European Commission has granted Orphan Drug designation in Europe to omaveloxolone for the treatment of Friedreich’s ataxia.

The FDA indicated that at this time it has not identified any potential review issues. The NDA is supported by the efficacy and safety data from the MOXIe Part 2 trial and additional supporting data from the MOXIe Part 1 and MOXIe Extension trials.

The FDA grants Priority Review to medicines that may offer significant improvements in the treatment, diagnosis, or prevention of a serious condition. This Designation shortens the FDA’s review of the NDA to eight months from the time of submission, versus a standard review timeline of 12 months. The FDA has assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (“PDUFA”) target action date of November 30, 2022. The FDA indicated it is currently planning to hold an advisory committee meeting to discuss the application.

“With the FDA’s acceptance of our NDA for filing, omaveloxolone is now one step closer to potentially providing a treatment option for patients with Friedreich’s ataxia, a rare, genetic, debilitating, and degenerative neuromuscular disorder with no approved therapies,” said Warren Huff, CEO of Reata. He said if approved, the company expects to launch the drug in early 2023.

Author: Rare Daily Staff