Vasomune Therapeutics, Inc. announced that their lead drug candidate AV-001 has received a positive recommendation from the Independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board (IDSMB) of the AV001-004 Phase 2a Study. About AV-001: Originally discovered and designed at Sunnybrook Research Institute at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto, AV-001 is being developed by Vasomune Therapeutics, Inc. under a co-development agreement with AnGes, Inc. AV-001 is a novel investigational medicine that targets the Tie2 receptor, a transmembrane protein most highly expressed on the surface of endothelial cells in the vasculature. AV-001 activates the nonredundant Tie2-Angiopoietin signaling axis, and through stimulation of multiple downstream pathways normalizes the vasculature by enhancing endothelial cell stability, restoring normal barrier defense, and blocking vascular leak.

Vascular dysfunction contributes to the underlying disease pathophysiology in patients with COVID-19, influenza, bacterial sepsis, acute kidney injury, glaucoma, hemorrhagic shock, sepsis, stroke, and complications associated with diabetes. Importantly, in multiple pre-clinical studies, AV-001 tightened endothelial cell-cell junctions and promoted endothelial cell survival, which reduced pulmonary edema, and improved lung function compared to untreated controls translating into significantly improved survival.