PTRA test to be used in Kidney Transplant Tx Study

The use of RNA signature tests reflects the growing role of molecular diagnostics in clinical development, providing new insights into patient response and supporting more personalized approaches to transplant medicine

Verici Dx Plc, (AIM: VRCI), a developer of advanced clinical diagnostics for organ transplant, announces an order with Asahi Kasei Therapeutics, Inc for a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating pegrizeprument (VEL-101), an investigational maintenance immunosuppressive therapy being developed for the prevention of acute rejection in solid organ transplant recipients.

As part of its order of tests and further services, Verici Dx will perform blood-based biomarker testing, including the Pre-Transplant Risk Assessment (PTRA) assay, as exploratory research tools as part of the clinical trial. The molecular data generated will help evaluate biomarker signatures associated with immune pathways activity, metabolic dysregulation, and homeostasis associated with transplant outcomes in patients receiving pegrizeprument.

PTRA is a blood-based next generation sequencing (NGS) gene expression with algorithm assay. The PTRA assay measures the pre-transplant expression of immune-response genes associated with early acute rejection.

Simon Tremblay, Senior Director, Clinical Development, Asahi Kasei Therapeutics, said:

"As we advance the clinical development of pegrizeprument, we are committed to building a deeper understanding of how patients respond to novel immunosuppressive therapies. Working with Verici Dx allows us to incorporate advanced molecular biomarker analyses into our clinical programme, generating additional scientific insights that may help inform the future of precision medicine in kidney transplantation."

Sara Barrington, CEO of Verici Dx, said:

"Clinical trials represent an important opportunity to better understand the biological mechanisms underlying transplant success and rejection. By incorporating advanced molecular diagnostics into therapeutic development and clinical research, we can generate valuable insights that may ultimately help personalize post-transplant care. We are excited to support Asahi Kasei Therapeutics on this important study and look forward to contributing our expertise in transplant biomarkers."