BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gelesis, Inc., a biotechnology company developing a novel category of therapies to safely induce weight loss, improve glycemic control, and treat other chronic diseases related to the gastrointestinal (GI) pathway, is pleased to report today that the last patient has completed treatment in the pivotal GLOW (Gelesis Loss Of Weight) Study. The GLOW study was designed to assess the long-term efficacy and safety of lead product candidate Gelesis100 over a six-month period across a broad patient population. The company has also enrolled its first European patient in the ongoing LIGHT-UP study with its second product candidate, Gelesis200, for weight loss and glycemic control. The study will enroll individuals who are overweight or have obesity and also have prediabetes or metformin-treated type 2 diabetes at more than 30 sites across the United States, Canada, and Europe.
“We’re pleased to have reached these two milestones for Gelesis as we continue to progress our platform technology and expand our pipeline,” said Hassan Heshmati MD, Chief Medical Officer of Gelesis. “We’re also continuing to establish a body of data around our platform technology, as we explore additional GI-related conditions such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).”
Further investigation of the Gelesis mechanism has led to an international collaboration with leading obesity and nutrition experts and new insights about how people with prediabetes respond to different types of diets, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. “We are learning a remarkable amount about the potential positive impact on local inflammation and glycemic parameters through our unique hydrogel system that is at the forefront of mechanobiology,” added Elaine Chiquette, Pharm.D., EVP Head of Science, Gelesis. “This emerging field at the interface of biology and engineering focuses on how cells sense and respond to mechanical stimuli and is helping us to unlock insights into the gut-brain-inflammation axis.”
About Gelesis100 and Gelesis200
Gelesis100 is a
pivotal-stage product candidate for weight loss and glycemic control,
which has demonstrated statistically significant weight loss, reduced
hunger, increased satiety and strong safety in previous clinical
studies. Gelesis200 is a second product candidate that has been
engineered for rapid hydration with significantly higher elasticity to
enhance glycemic control and weight loss for patients who have
pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes. A proof-of-concept clinical study with
Gelesis200 (LIGHT-UP) has been initiated for weight loss and glycemic
control in people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. The results from
this study are expected mid-2018.
Both Gelesis100 and Gelesis200 are orally – administered capsules containing small hydrogel particles made by cross-linking two naturally occurring food ingredients to generate novel compositions that are expected to be safe and well tolerated. Gelesis product candidates are designed to employ multiple mechanisms of action that leverage mechanotransduction along the gastrointestinal (GI) tract to induce weight loss and improve glycemic control. The hydrogel particles swell and shrink in different parts of the GI system, mix homogeneously with food, travel through the GI tract, and – once in the large intestines – release most of the water, which is reabsorbed by the body. The small hydrogel particles are then safely eliminated by the body in the same manner as food.
To our knowledge, Gelesis’ novel hydrogels are the only super absorbents made from materials which are considered Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and commonly used in foods. Gelesis also received positive confirmation from the FDA that GLOW is a nonsignificant risk (NSR) device study. Gelesis holds 11 families of patents, several of which have already been allowed or issued in major markets. Most recently, Gelesis received a Notice of Allowance from Japan Patent Office (JPO) on Patent No. 2014-514632 covering composition of matter for Gelesis100.
About Gelesis
Gelesis is developing a novel hydrogel
platform to treat obesity and other chronic diseases related to the
gastrointestinal (GI) pathway. Gelesis’ proprietary approach acts
mechanically in the GI system to potentially alter the course of chronic
diseases safely and effectively. Gelesis is currently evaluating its
lead product candidate, Gelesis100, in a pivotal trial for weight loss,
which is expected to read out in Q3 2017. Additionally, Gelesis recently
initiated a proof-of-concept study for its second candidate, Gelesis200,
which is optimized for weight loss and glycemic control in patients with
type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes. New hydrogel compositions based on the
Gelesis platform are also being explored in preclinical and pilot
studies in other GI-related conditions such as nonalcoholic fatty liver
disease (NAFLD), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and inflammatory
bowel disease (IBD).
The Gelesis executive and advisory team includes some of the world’s leading experts in obesity research and clinical development, innovators in material science, and entrepreneurs. Gelesis was co-founded by PureTech Health (PRTC.L), an advanced, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company (www.puretechhealth.com).
