60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SXTP; SXTPW) (the
“Company”), a pharmaceutical company focused on developing new
medicines for infectious diseases, announced today that a letter,
titled Trial Planned to Evaluate Safety and Efficacy of Tafenoquine
+ Atovaquone/Azithromycin in Hospitalized Babesiosis Patients,
authored by the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Dow, PhD,
has been published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. Dr. Dow’s
letter responds to comments made on a recent article published in
the Journal, “Tafenoquine-atovaquone combination achieves radical
cure and confers sterile immunity in experimental models of human
babesiosis.” Those comments, by M Liu M, EM Galon EM, S Ji, and X
Xuan, called for more published medical literature on safely and
effectively treating babesiosis.
Dr. Dow’s response to those comments outlines plans by 60
Degrees Pharmaceuticals to launch a clinical trial to study the use
of tafenoquine in treating human babesiosis. The
Company plans to begin enrolling babesiosis patients this summer.
The study will be the first and only of its kind in the United
States to date.
“A significant unmet medical need exists in North America,
Europe, and Northeast Asia for new or improved methods of treatment
and prevention of all forms of babesiosis, and for clinical trials
dedicated to that end,” said Dr. Dow. “In close consultation with
key opinion leaders in the field, we recently submitted a clinical
protocol to the Food and Drug Administration. We are confident that
the results of this study will add meaningfully to the global
medical community’s understanding of this very serious, emerging,
tick-borne infectious disease.”
The 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals babesiosis study protocol
evaluates a triple combination of 800 milligrams of tafenoquine
plus the recommended standard of care – which is
atovaquone-azithromycin for at least 10 days – versus matching
placebo and atovaquone-azithromycin in hospitalized patients with
babesiosis.
Tafenoquine is approved for malaria prophylaxis
in the United States under the product name ARAKODA®. The safety of
the approved regimen of tafenoquine for malaria
prophylaxis has been assessed in five separate randomized,
double-blind, active comparator or placebo-controlled trials for
durations of up to six months.
Tafenoquine has not been proven to be effective
for treatment or prevention of babesiosis and is not approved by
the FDA for such an indication.
Babesiosis, a potentially life-threatening disease in
immunosuppressed patients, is a tick-borne illness steadily
emerging in the United States.
About Babesiosis and the
Tafenoquine StudyThis study is a randomized double-blind
placebo-controlled trial anticipated to enroll at least 24 patients
in the U.S. in 2024. The two main study endpoints will be time to
sustained clinical resolution of symptoms of babesiosis and
molecular cure as determined by an FDA-approved nucleic acid test.
The study will be conducted at three hospitals in the northeastern
United States.
The efficacy and safety of
8-aminoquinolines, a class of drugs that includes
tafenoquine and primaquine, for prevention and
treatment of malaria is well established. The appearance of several
case studies of tafenoquine use for babesiosis in
the literature suggests that the drug is being used for this
purpose in the practice of medicine in the U.S.
There may be approximately 47,000 cases per year in the U.S.
based on the observation of 476,000 Lyme infections and an
estimated babesiosis coinfection rate of 10 percent.
About ARAKODA®
(tafenoquine)Tafenoquine was
discovered by Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and
the current study was funded by the United States
Army Medical & Materiel Development
Activity. Tafenoquine was approved for
malaria prophylaxis in 2018 in the United States as
ARAKODA® and in Australia as KODATEF®.
Both were commercially launched in 2019 and are currently
distributed through pharmaceutical wholesaler networks in each
respective country. They are available at retail pharmacies as a
prescription-only malaria prevention drug.According to
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the long
terminal half-life of tafenoquine, which is
approximately 16 days, may offer potential advantages in
less-frequent dosing for prophylaxis for
malaria. ARAKODA® is not suitable for everyone, and
patients and prescribers should review the Important Safety
Information below.
Individuals at risk of contracting
malaria are prescribed ARAKODA® 2 x 100 mg tablets once per day for
three days (the loading phase) prior to travel to an area of the
world where malaria is endemic, 2 x 100 mg tablets weekly for up to
six months during travel, then 2 x 100 mg in the week following
travel.
ARAKODA® (tafenoquine)
Important Safety InformationARAKODA® is an antimalarial
indicated for the prophylaxis of malaria in patients aged 18 years
of age and older.Contraindications
ARAKODA® should not be administered
to:
- Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (“G6PD”) deficiency or
unknown G6PD status;
- Breastfeeding by a lactating woman when the infant is found to
be G6PD deficient or if G6PD status is unknown;
- Patients with a history of psychotic disorders or current
psychotic symptoms; or
- Known hypersensitivity reactions to tafenoquine, other
8-aminoquinolines, or any component of ARAKODA®.
Warnings and
PrecautionsHemolytic Anemia: G6PD testing
must be performed before prescribing ARAKODA® due to the risk of
hemolytic anemia. Monitor patients for signs or symptoms of
hemolysis.
G6PD Deficiency in Pregnancy or
Lactation: ARAKODA® may cause fetal harm when administered to a
pregnant woman with a G6PD-deficient fetus. ARAKODA® is not
recommended during pregnancy. A G6PD-deficient infant may be at
risk for hemolytic anemia from exposure to ARAKODA® through breast
milk. Check infant’s G6PD status before breastfeeding begins.
Methemoglobinemia: Asymptomatic
elevations in blood methemoglobin have been observed. Initiate
appropriate therapy if signs or symptoms of methemoglobinemia
occur.
Psychiatric Effects: Serious psychotic
adverse reactions have been observed in patients with a history of
psychosis or schizophrenia, at doses different from the approved
dose. If psychotic symptoms (hallucinations, delusions or grossly
disorganized thinking or behavior) occur, consider discontinuation
of ARAKODA® therapy and evaluation by a mental health professional
as soon as possible.
Hypersensitivity Reactions: Serious
hypersensitivity reactions have been observed with administration
of ARAKODA®. If hypersensitivity reactions occur, institute
appropriate therapy.Delayed Adverse Reactions: Due to the long
half-life of ARAKODA® (approximately 16 days), psychiatric effects,
hemolytic anemia, methemoglobinemia and hypersensitivity reactions
may be delayed in onset and/or duration.
Adverse Reactions:
The most common adverse reactions (incidence greater than or equal
to 1 percent) were: headache, dizziness, back pain, diarrhea,
nausea, vomiting, increased alanine aminotransferase, motion
sickness, insomnia, depression, abnormal dreams and anxiety.
Drug
InteractionsAvoid co-administration with drugs that are
substrates of organic cation transporter-2 (OCT2) or multidrug and
toxin extrusion transporters.
Use in Specific
Populations Lactation: Advise women not to breastfeed a
G6PD-deficient infant or infant with unknown G6PD status during
treatment and for 3 months after the last dose of ARAKODA®.
To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS,
contact 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. at 1- 888-834-0225 or the
FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch. The full prescribing
information of ARAKODA® is located here.
About 60 Degrees
Pharmaceuticals, Inc.60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
founded in 2010, specializes in developing and marketing new
medicines for the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases
that affect the lives of millions of people. 60 Degrees
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. achieved FDA approval of its lead product,
ARAKODA® (tafenoquine), for malaria prevention, in
2018. 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. also collaborates with
prominent research organizations in the U.S., Australia, and
Singapore. The 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. mission has been
supported through in-kind funding from the U.S. Department of
Defense and private institutional investors including Knight
Therapeutics Inc., a Canadian-based pan-American specialty
pharmaceutical company. 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is
headquartered in Washington D.C., with a majority-owned subsidiary
in Australia. Learn more at www.60degreespharma.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release may contain
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor
provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Forward‐looking statements reflect the current view about
future events. When used in this press release, the words
“anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “future,” “intend,”
“plan,” or the negative of these terms and similar expressions, as
they relate to us or our management, identify forward‐looking
statements. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts
nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only
on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions
regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies,
projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy, activities
of regulators and future regulations and other future conditions.
Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are
subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in
circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are
outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition
may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking
statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these
forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our
actual results and financial condition to differ materially from
those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among
others, the following: there is substantial doubt as to our ability
to continue on a going-concern basis; we might not be eligible for
Australian government research and development tax rebates; if we
are not able to successfully develop, obtain FDA approval for, and
provide for the commercialization of non-malaria prevention
indications for tafenoquine (ARAKODA® or other
regimen) or Celgosivir in a timely manner, we may not be able to
expand our business operations; we may not be able to successfully
conduct planned clinical trials; and we have no manufacturing
capacity which puts us at risk of lengthy and costly delays of
bringing our products to market. More detailed information
about the Company and the risk factors that may affect the
realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the
Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC), including the information contained in our
Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 1, 2024, and
our subsequent SEC filings. Investors and security holders are
urged to read these documents free of charge on the SEC’s web site
at www.sec.gov. As a result of these matters, changes in
facts, assumptions not being realized or other circumstances, the
Company’s actual results may differ materially from the expected
results discussed in the forward-looking statements contained in
this press release. Any forward-looking statement made by us in
this press release is based only on information currently available
to us and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. We
undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking
statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to
time, whether as a result of new information, future developments
or otherwise.
Media Contact:Sheila A.
BurkeSheilaBurke-consultant@60degreespharma.com(484) 667-6330
Investor Contact:Patrick
Gaynespatrickgaynes@60degreespharma.com(310) 989-5666
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