Autoimmune Diseases of the Nervous System

A Phase 1 dose-escalation study designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of anito-cel in subjects with generalized myasthenia gravis (GMG). Anitocabtagene autoleucel (anito-cel) is a BCMA-directed CAR-T cell therapy.

his study is an investigator-initiated single center, single arm clinical study with a target population of patients with relapsed/refractory neurologic immune disorders. It is an early exploratory clinical study of the safety, tolerability and initial efficacy of JY231 injection in the treatment of relapsed/refractory neurologic immune disorders.

Neurological autoimmune diseases are a group of disorders characterized by the abnormal immune response attacking the nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves. These diseases exhibit high heterogeneity, diverse clinical presentations, and are challenging to diagnose and manage due to a lack of effective treatments. In this study, the investigators will recruit eight kinds of autoimmune diseases of nervous system including Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder (NMOSD), Myasthenia Gravis (MG), Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP), idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM), and multiple sclerosis (MS), autoimmune encephalitis (AE), Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein Antibody-Associated Disease (MOGAD). Through this study, the investigators aim to discover biomarkers with high sensitivity, specificity, and stability, which can support early diagnosis, disease monitoring, and personalized treatment for neurological autoimmune diseases, thereby improving the quality of life and prognosis for patients.

Antibody-mediated inflammatory diseases of the nervous system (also known as autoimmune diseases of the nervous system) are autoimmune diseases in which autoimmune cells and immune molecules attack the nervous system as the main pathogenic mechanism. In the immune response, pathogenic antibodies acting on autoantigens of the nervous system are collectively referred to as autoantibodies of the nervous system, and antibody-mediated inflammatory diseases of the nervous system can occur in the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system, and neuromuscular junctions, and muscles. In this study, we will recruit eight kinds of autoimmune diseases of nervous system including Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder (NMOSD), Myasthenia Gravis (MG), Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP), idiopathic inflammatory myopathyand (IIM), multiple sclerosis (MS), autoimmune encephalitis (AE), Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein Antibody-Associated Disease (MOGAD) and POEMS Syndrome. B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) is expressed on the surface of plasma cells, thus making it an ideal target for targeted therapies. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells against BCMA offers another potential therapeutic option to eliminate plasma cells in patients with neurological autoimmune diseases driven by abnormal antibody who still suffer recurrent attacks from conventional treatments. In the current study, the safety and efficacy of a novel CAR-T cell therapy using CT103A cells, are evaluated in patients with relapsed/refractory antibody-mediated idiopathic inflammatory diseases.

This study aims to characterize the clinical features, frequency of different subgroups of MG, and identify predictors of treatment responsiveness among different subgroups of MG. The predictors are including primary outcome (percentage of changes in MG scales at baseline at time of enrollment and after 3 months) and secondary outcome (treatment-related adverse events). Also it aims to determine the frequency of patients with refractory MG. This information will be used to understand the trends and mechanisms of disease relapse, and optimal management strategies.

Rationale: Ocrelizumab is widely and effectively used to treat relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS). Phase II studies and data from large patient cohorts indicate that rituximab, another anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, is probably equally effective and safe as ocrelizumab in the treatment of RMS. An advantage of rituximab is a considerably lower price. Therefore we will start a study aimed at demonstrating non-inferiority of rituximab compared to ocrelizumab in RMS. If non-inferiority of rituximab can be shown, important reductions in the cost of treatment of RMS will be possible, without loss of efficacy. Objective: Evaluating the efficacy and safety of ritixumab compared to ocrelizumab in the treatmens of RMS. Study design: Randomized double blind multi-centre non-inferiority study of rituximab compared to ocrelizumab in 200 patients with RMS. The trial duration will be 30 months Study population: The study population consists of 200 adult RMS patiens with an indication to start anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody treatment. Intervention: Patients will be randomized 1:1 into the standard group (ocrelizumab treatment) or the experimental group (rituximab treatment). Main study parameters: To conclude non-inferiority of rituximab there will be one primary endpoint: the proportion of patients free of inflammatory disease activity (defined as: new or enlarged T2 lesions) between week 24 (M6) and week 96 (M24) of treatment in each arm. Secondary trial endpoints are presence and number of clinical relapses,T2 and contrast enhancing lesion volumes, brain volume and brain volume changes, disease progression (defined as clinically relevant change on any of the measures: EDSS, T25FW, 9HPT, SDMT), biochemical parameters such as lipidomics and neurofilament light (NfL), immunological parameters, safety as measured by the number of (serious) adverse events ((S)AE), quality of life (EQ-5D-L) and treatment satisfaction (TSQM) and patient reported measures of MS impact (MSIS-29) and well-being (questionnaire on physical complaints) Nature and extent of the burden and risk: Patients included in this study will be treated and monitored by MRI, clinical tests and laboratory tests according to existing protocols and will not be exposed to extra or unknown risks. They will have extra annual questionnaires and larger blood samples at some time points. There is extensive experience with both rituximab and ocrelizumab as efficacious and safe treatments of RMS.