Dilaforette Initiates Phase II Clinical Trial with Sevuparin in SCD

Karolinska Development AB has announced that its portfolio company Dilaforette AB has enrolled the first patient in a clinical Phase II study with sevuparin in patients with sickle-cell disease (SCD).
The Phase II study is a multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in hospitalized SCD patients experiencing vaso-occlusive crisis.

Sevuparin is an innovative, proprietary polysaccharide drug which has the potential to restore blood flow and prevent further microvascular obstructions caused by abnormal blood cells in SCD patients.

SCD is a disabling and potentially fatal disease with a large unmet medical need in both the developed and developing world. In the US and in Europe, it is estimated that close to 100,000 and 35,000 patients, respectively, are diagnosed with this hereditary disease. There is also an even larger patient pool in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Jim Van heusden, CEO of Karolinska Development, comments: “The start of this proof of concept trial with sevuparin in patients with SCD is an important milestone. We look forward to the study results in the second half of 2016 as a positive outcome would represent a major value inflection point for Dilaforette, a company in which Karolinska Development holds a significant interest.”