Missing steps in the STAIR case: a Translational Medicine perspective on the development of NXY-059 for treatment of acute ischemic stroke.
The continued failure in approving new drugs for treatment of acute stroke has been recently set back by the failure of the NXY-059 (Stroke-Acute Ischemic NXY Treatment (SAINT) II) trial. The disappointment was heightened by the latter study being viewed as a most promising compound for stroke drug development program based on the preclinical data. Since the SAINT I/II development program included many of the STAIR (Stroke Therapy Academic Industry Round table) guidelines, yet have still failed to achieve the expected efficacy, there is a clear need to continue and analyze the path forward for stroke drug discovery. To this end, this review calls for a consortium approach including academia, government (FDA/NIH), and pharmaceutical industry partnerships to define this path. It is also imperative that more attention is given to the evolving discipline of Translational Medicine. A key issue in this respect is the need to devote more attention to the characteristics of the drug candidate nature-target interaction, and its relationship to pharmacodynamic treatment end points. It is equally important that efforts are spent to prove that phenotypic outcomes are linked to the purported mechanism of action of the compound. Development of technologies that allows a better assessment of these parameters, especially in in vivo models are paramount. Finally, rational patient selection and new outcome scales tailored in an adaptive design model must be evaluated.
Feuerstein
Giora Z
GZ
Wyeth Research, Collegeville, Pennsylvania 19426, USA. feuersg@wyeth.com
Zaleska
Margaret M
MM
Krams
Michael
M
Wang
Xinkang
X
Day
Mark
M
Rutkowski
Julia L
JL
Finklestein
Seth P
SP
Pangalos
Menelas N
MN
Poole
Michael
M
Stiles
Gary L
GL
Ruffolo
Robert R
RR
Walsh
Frank L
FL
D001557:Benzenesulfonates / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002317:Cardiovascular Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017321:Clinical Trials, Phase I as Topic; D017322:Clinical Trials, Phase II as Topic; D017277:Drug Approval; D015195:Drug Design; D004345:Drug Industry; D023381:Endpoint Determination; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D009316:National Institutes of Health (U.S.); D018579:Patient Selection; D020521:Stroke; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D014486:United States Food and Drug Administration
D001557:Benzenesulfonates; D002317:Cardiovascular Agents; C120851:disufenton sodium