Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the Investigational New Drug (IND) application to evaluate VTR-297 for the treatment of onychomycosis. Onychomycosis, or tinea unguium, is a fungal infection of the nail. Onychomycosis can result in discoloration of the nail, onycholysis (nail separation from the nail bed), and nail plate thickening.

Onychomycosis accounts for one half of all nail disease with an estimated U.S. prevalence of up to 14%. In addition to cosmetic issues, onychomycosis infection may indirectly decrease peripheral circulation, thereby worsening conditions such as venous stasis and diabetic foot ulcers. VTR-297 is a small molecule histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor with activity against dermatophytes and fungi, originally isolated from the yeast species Streptomyces hygroscopicus as an antifungal antibiotic, first described in 1976.

Current therapies for onychomycosis include topical agents JUBLIA® (efinaconzole), KERYDIN® (tavaborole), and PENLAC® (ciclopirox). There have not been any new onychomycosis treatments approved by the FDA since 2014.