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AusperBio Therapeutics Inc. and Ausper Biopharma Co., Ltd. (together AusperBio), a near-commercial biopharmaceutical company focused on developing targeted oligonucleotide therapeutics for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and other diseases, announced initiation of patient dosing in a clinical study evaluating AHB-171, the company's investigational hepatocyte-targeted small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapeutic candidate for chronic hepatitis B.
The milestone marks the advancement of AusperBio's second clinical-stage therapeutic candidate and the first clinical candidate developed using its proprietary Au-HALO liver-targeting delivery technology and siRNA platform. Together with the Company's lead clinical program AHB-137, AHB-171 further strengthens AusperBio's hepatitis B virus (HBV) pipeline and expands its portfolio of next-generation oligonucleotide therapeutics.
CHB remains a major global public health challenge. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Hepatitis Report 2024, approximately 254 million people worldwide are living with HBV, with approximately 1.2 million new infections each year. While current antiviral therapies can effectively suppress viral replication, achieving a functional cure remains a significant unmet medical need.
Dr. Guofeng Cheng, co-founder and CEO of AusperBio, commented, "Dosing the first patient with our HBV siRNA molecule AHB-171 is a significant milestone for AusperBio and underscores our strong ability to develop proprietary platform technologies and translate them into clinical-stage assets. AHB-171 expands AusperBio's HBV pipeline beyond the lead ASO AHB-137 program and reinforces our strategy of developing differentiated oligonucleotide therapeutics with complementary mechanisms of action for the next-generation therapeutics. We believe this approach will play an important role in achieving a functional cure for chronic hepatitis B. We are grateful to the patients, investigators, and study teams whose partnership has made this milestone possible."
Dr. Chris Yang, co-founder and CSO of AusperBio, added, "AHB-171 integrates our proprietary siRNA discovery capabilities with the Au-HALO liver-targeting delivery technology to create a differentiated therapeutic candidate. It is designed to provide potent and sustained suppression of viral gene expressions, with the potential to support combination strategies toward a functional cure for chronic hepatitis B. This milestone marks the first opportunity to evaluate its clinical profile of AHB-171 in CHB patients also assess the performance of our Au-HALO liver-targeting delivery and siRNA technology platform. We look forward to generating clinical data that will guide the continued development of AHB-171, strengthen our HBV pipeline, and further validate the broader potential of our targeted delivery technologies."
AHB-171 is an investigational hepatocyte-targeted siRNA therapeutic candidate being developed for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B. Leveraging AusperBio's proprietary Au-HALO liver-targeting delivery platform, AHB-171 is designed to selectively reduce viral gene expression and provide potent and sustained antiviral activity. As the first clinical candidate developed using the Au-HALO platform, AHB-171 is expected to provide the clinical validation of the Company's targeted delivery technologies and siRNA platform while expanding its portfolio of differentiated HBV therapeutics.
AusperBio is a near-commercial biopharmaceutical company with operations in the USA and China, dedicated to advancing oligonucleotide and targeted delivery technologies for transformative therapies, with an initial focus on achieving functional cure for CHB infection. The company has established a diversified innovation engine built on its proprietary Med-Oligo ASO and Au-HALO targeted delivery technology and siRNA platforms, enabling the discovery and development of differentiated oligonucleotide therapeutics across multiple modalities.
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