Dr. Christian Marsolais reports

THERATECHNOLOGIES PRESENTS DATA AT ID WEEK SHOWING TESAMORELIN REDUCES VISCERAL ADIPOSE TISSUE (VAT) AND LIVER FAT IN PEOPLE WITH HIV ON INTEGRASE INHIBITORS (INSTIS)

Theratechnologies Inc. has presented data in a poster session at ID Week 2023 in Boston, Mass., demonstrating that treatment with tesamorelin significantly reduced visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and hepatic fat fraction (HFF, a measure of liver fat) in people with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) treated with integrase-inhibitor-based (INSTI) regimens.

In the retrospective subanalysis, tesamorelin reduced VAT by 8.3 per cent after 12 months of treatment, compared with a 10.8-per-cent increase in VAT among placebo-treated patients treated with INSTIs. While anthropometric measurements at baseline did not differ between the two groups, VAT increased in the placebo group even in the absence of significant weight or BMI (body mass index) changes. Furthermore, the tesamorelin group experienced a 31-per-cent relative reduction in HFF compared with a 0-per-cent reduction for the placebo group at 12 months.

"Our study subanalysis shows that tesamorelin effectively reduces visceral and hepatic fat in people with HIV on integrase-inhibitor-based regimens -- one of the most common classes of anti-retroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV," said study investigator Dr. Lindsay Fourman, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Metabolism Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. "Accordingly, tesamorelin may be effective in countering gains in adiposity that commonly occur with integrase inhibitors."

Tesamorelin, a growth-hormone-releasing hormone analog, has been shown to reduce VAT by more than 15 per cent over six months in persons with HIV with excess visceral abdominal fat. That finding prompted the latest analysis, in which investigators reviewed data from a previous placebo-controlled trial of 61 patients with HIV-associated non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Amongst participants, 39 (64 per cent) were on INSTI-containing regimens, the most common of which was dolutegravir (41 per cent). Those individuals were largely similar at baseline to those on regimens without INSTIs, including their VAT and HFF.

"As we learn more about the mechanisms of rapid weight gain and, in particular, visceral fat accumulation in people with HIV who are on integrase inhibitors, potential treatment strategies will become more important," commented Dr. Christian Marsolais, PhD, senior vice-president and chief medical officer of Theratechnologies. "Tesamorelin remains the only FDA-approved therapy to treat excess abdominal fat in adults with HIV, and these data are yet another key piece in highlighting its efficacy in modern HIV management."

Complete abstract and poster details are available on the company's website.

About Theratechnologies Inc.

Theratechnologies is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies addressing unmet medical needs.

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