Pudafensine, Initiator’s most advanced drug program has successfully demonstrated efficacy in a Clinicial Phase 2b Proof-of-Concept study to treat patients who suffer from organic erectile dysfunction (ED) that do not respond to the currently marketed drugs in the PDE5i class (e.g. Viagra®, Cialis®, Levitra®).
Pudafensine strengthens the natural erection response by having a dual-action, both a central effect initiating erection and a peripheral effect potentiating erection through smooth muscle relaxation. Pudafensine is aimed for treatment of organic erectile dysfunction in patients who have erectile dysfunction (ED) due to abnormalities of the penile arteries and/or veins. Most common risk factors for organic ED are diabetes, overweight, lack of exercise, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and cigarette smoking. Since Initiator Pharma was founded and pudafensine acquired, all preclinical development of the drug candidate to enable an application for clinical trials (CTA) has been carried out by the company’s auspices. Pudafensine is developed as a tablet that is taken orally. It is the company’s goal to be able to create a new “First-Line” treatment (recommended treatment) for the large group of men who have organic erectile dysfunction, who are sub-optimally treated with PDE5i products or for whom PDE5i treatment is contraindicated.
Clinical status
Pudafensine has demonstrated positive results from its Phase IIb clinical trial with pudafensine (IP2015) for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED). The study data analysis has demonstrated statistically significant and clinically relevant efficacy in ED-related endpoints and no observations of critical adverse events.
The primary objective of this study was to investigate the effects of pudafensine and placebo in 130 male patients with moderate or severe erectile dysfunction (ED) on the ability to develop and maintain an erection. The treatment was administrated as a single dose once weekly for 4 weeks. The study demonstrated statistically significant efficacy on the primary endpoint (related to improvements in intercourse settings) compared to placebo [p=0.034] and baseline [p=0.046]. Furthermore, the results were consistent throughout the study. Several other clinical endpoints related to improved intercourse activities (obtained from the International Index of Erectile Function Questionnaire, IIEF-15) demonstrated significant effects compared to the baseline. The frequency and type of adverse effects were mild to moderate and comparable to those observed in the placebo group. There was no reporting of critical safety observations.