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CompletedNCT03626714Updated Aug 13, 2019Results posted

Safety and Pharmacokinetics of Sustained-release Depot Tacrolimus: A First-in-human Study

An Early Phase 1 interventional study of Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus in Organ Transplant Rejection and Psoriasis, sponsored by Auritec Pharmaceuticals. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 45 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2019-08-13.

Sponsored by Auritec Pharmaceuticals · Early Phase 1, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Early Phase 1
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
8
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years to 45 Years
Sex
All
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Study summary

This first-in-human study is designed to assess the safety and pharmacokinetic (PK) profile of sustained-release (SR) depot tacrolimus, which will be administered as a single dose of 0.1 mg/kg by subcutaneous (SC) injection in healthy subjects.

Read the detailed description

This is a first-in-human study to assess the safety and pharmacokinetic (PK) profile of sustained-release (SR) tacrolimus, which will be administered as a single dose of 0.1 mg/kg by subcutaneous (SC) injection in healthy subjects.

The short-term general investigational plan is to evaluate sustained release tacrolimus in healthy volunteers for up to 30 days in an exploratory trial to determine safety and drug concentrations in blood. The results from this study will inform the long-term goal of this program, which is to provide an improved treatment modality for prophylaxis of organ (kidney, liver and heart) transplant rejection with the additional benefit of enhancing medication compliance. These improvements have the potential to mitigate both the personal and economic burden of this disease.

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Conditions studied

  • Organ Transplant Rejection
  • Psoriasis

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Keywords

  • Tacrolimus
  • Immunosuppressant
  • Sustained-release
  • Plexis
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In context

Psoriasis

1,899 studies on the registry are indexed under Psoriasis; 233 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 8 is below the median of 70 across 1,447 interventional studies indexed under Psoriasis.

Browse Psoriasis studies →

Lead sponsor

Auritec Pharmaceuticals is the lead sponsor of 2 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 45 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  • Subjects must be able to understand and provide informed consent. A signed informed consent form must be provided before any study assessments are done;
  • Males or females, between 18 and 45 years of age, inclusive;
  • Body mass index must be within the range 18.5 to 32.0 kg/m2, inclusive;
  • Must be in good health, as determined by no clinically significant findings from medical history, vital signs, and 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG), inclusive of documented absence of QT prolongation;
  • Clinical laboratory evaluations (including clinical chemistry panel [fasted at least 10 hours], complete blood count [CBC], and urinalysis [UA]) must be within the reference range for the test laboratory, unless deemed not clinically significant by the Investigator;
  • Must be negative for autoimmune disorders in the past 3 months and at Screening - participant's medical history will be used for this evaluation;
  • Must not use any immunosuppressant calcineurin inhibitor product other than SR Injectable tacrolimus throughout the dosing period and until after the final visit;
  • Must agree to blood draws throughout the course of the study and venous access sufficient to allow for blood sampling as per the protocol;
  • Must be negative for selected drugs of abuse at Screening and at Check-in (Day -1);
  • Must have a negative hepatitis panel (including hepatitis B surface antigen [HBsAg] and hepatitis C virus antibody [HCV]) and negative human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] antibody screens;
  • Females will be nonpregnant, nonlactating, and either postmenopausal, defined as amenorrhea for at least 1 year and follicle-stimulating hormone levels of 40 mIU/mL or higher; surgically sterile (eg, tubal ligation, hysterectomy, oophorectomy) for at least 90 days prior to Screening; or agree to use, from the time of signing the informed consent or 10 days prior to Check-in on Day -1 of the Inpatient Period until 30 days after Study Discharge, one of the following forms of contraception: nonhormonal intrauterine device (IUD) with spermicide; female condom with spermicide; contraceptive sponge with spermicide; diaphragm with spermicide; cervical cap with spermicide; male sexual partner who agrees to use a male condom with spermicide; or sterile sexual partner; alternatively, women must agree to maintain abstinence (must agree to use a double barrier method if they become sexually active during the study. For all females of childbearing potential, the pregnancy test result must be negative at Screening and Check-in on Day -1 of the Inpatient Period (see Appendix 1). Women must also agree not to douche throughout the dosing period and until after the final visit;
  • Males will either be sterile or agree to use, from Check-in on Day -1 of the Inpatient Period until 90 days following Study Discharge, one of the following approved methods of contraception: male condom with spermicide; sterile sexual partner; or use by female sexual partner of an IUD with spermicide; a female condom with spermicide; a contraceptive sponge with spermicide; an intravaginal system (eg, NuvaRing®); a diaphragm with spermicide; a cervical cap with spermicide; or oral, implantable, transdermal, or injectable contraceptives. Subjects will refrain from sperm donation from Check-in on Day -1 of the Inpatient Period until 90 days following Study Discharge.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Inability or unwillingness of a participant to give written informed consent or comply with study protocol;
  • Prisoners or patients who are compulsorily detained (involuntarily incarcerated) for treatment of either a psychiatric or physical (eg, infectious disease) illness must not be enrolled into this trial;
  • Presence of an uncontrolled, unstable clinically significant medical condition that in the opinion of the Investigator may increase the risk to the subject or may interfere with the interpretation of safety and PK evaluations, or could impair the subject's ability to complete the trial, or could impair the decisional capacity of the subject;
  • Presence of clinically significant vital signs or a physical examination finding that, in the opinion of the Investigator, could increase the risk to the subject or may potentially interfere with the ability to evaluate safety and tolerability in the trial;
  • History of tacrolimus use, or hypersensitivity and/or adverse reaction to calcineurin inhibitor drugs;
  • History of toxic shock syndrome;
  • Currently receiving chemotherapy or immunosuppressive agents;
  • Use of investigative drugs within 30 days or 5 half-lives of study participation;
  • Currently using sirolimus;
  • Currently using live vaccines;
  • Currently on concomitant substrates and/or inhibitors of CYP3A4;
  • Requires the use of any concomitant medication, except for treatment of an adverse event (AE) during the study;
  • Any abnormality on clinical laboratory tests, or ECG finding that is considered to be clinically significant by the Investigator.
  • Known or suspected (nonfebrile) seizure disorder;
  • Use of any other depot medications within the last three months.
  • Unwilling to commit to avoid eating grapefruit or drinking grapefruit juice during the first 30 days of this exploratory study.
  • Grade ≥ 1 finding as described in the Toxicity Grading Scale for Healthy Adult and Adolescent Volunteers Enrolled in Preventive Vaccine Clinical Trials
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Study design

Phase
Early Phase 1
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
8 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Sustained Release Tacrolimus

    All subjects will be treated with a single dose injection of sustained-release Tacrolimus

    Drug: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus

Interventions

  • DrugSustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus

    Long-acting formulation of tacrolimus developed using Auritec's proprietary Plexis drug delivery technology.

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Number of Subjects That Experienced Treatment-related Adverse Events [Safety and Tolerability]

    Adverse events were documented at each study visit according to the criteria set forth in the Toxicity Grading Scale for Healthy Adult and Adolescent Volunteers Enrolled in Preventive Vaccine Clinical Trials as follows: Grade 1 (mild); Grade 2 (moderate); Grade 3 (severe); Grade 4 (potentially life-threatening).

    Time frame: 60 days

  2. Drug Concentrations in Blood Samples at Individual Time-points

    The concentrations of tacrolimus in blood samples were measured at baseline, day 1 (1 hr, 3 hrs, 6 hrs, 12 hrs, and 24 hrs), followed by days 3, 7, 14, 21, 30, 37, 44, 51 and 60.

    Time frame: 60 days

  3. Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Cmax

    Maximum observed tacrolimus whole blood concentration

    Time frame: 60 days

  4. Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Tmax

    Time to maximum observed tacrolimus whole blood concentration

    Time frame: 60 days

  5. Blood Concentration-time Curve [AUC]

    Area under the concentration-time curve

    Time frame: 60 days

  6. Terminal Elimination Half-life [t1/2]

    The apparent terminal elimination half-life was calculated.

    Time frame: 60 days

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Results

Posted Jun 11, 2019
Limitations and caveats
The study's main limitations include the small sample size (n=8) and the short duration (60 days).

Participant flow

Participant flow — Overall Study
MilestoneExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Started8
Completed8
Not completed0

Outcome measures

PrimaryNumber of Subjects That Experienced Treatment-related Adverse Events [Safety and Tolerability]

Adverse events were documented at each study visit according to the criteria set forth in the Toxicity Grading Scale for Healthy Adult and Adolescent Volunteers Enrolled in Preventive Vaccine Clinical Trials as follows: Grade 1 (mild); Grade 2 (moderate); Grade 3 (severe); Grade 4 (potentially life-threatening).

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Count of participants · Participants
Number of Subjects That Experienced Treatment-related Adverse Events [Safety and Tolerability]
ParticipantsExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Tenderness at Injection Site - Grade 16
Burning Pain at Injection Site - Grade 16
Erythema/Redness at Injection Site - Grade 13
Induration/Swelling at Injection Site - Grade 12
Tenderness at Injection Site - Grade 21
PrimaryDrug Concentrations in Blood Samples at Individual Time-points

The concentrations of tacrolimus in blood samples were measured at baseline, day 1 (1 hr, 3 hrs, 6 hrs, 12 hrs, and 24 hrs), followed by days 3, 7, 14, 21, 30, 37, 44, 51 and 60.

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Mean · ng/mL
Drug Concentrations in Blood Samples at Individual Time-points
ng/mLExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Baseline0 ± 0
Day 1, hour 10.667 ± 0.505
Day 1, hour 30.956 ± 0.556
Day 1 hour 61.30 ± 0.623
Day 1, hour 121.84 ± 0.548
Day 1, hour 241.54 ± 0.484
Day 31.24 ± 0.397
Day 70.775 ± 0.365
Day 140.341 ± 0.158
Day 210.320 ± 0.127
Day 300.302 ± 0.091
Day 370.282 ± 0.074
Day 440.260 ± 0.082
Day 510.269 ± 0.091
Day 600.260 ± 0.072
PrimaryMean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Cmax

Maximum observed tacrolimus whole blood concentration

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Mean · ng/mL
Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Cmax
ng/mLExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Cmax1.92 ± 0.527
PrimaryMean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Tmax

Time to maximum observed tacrolimus whole blood concentration

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Mean · Hour
Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Tmax
HourExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Mean Blood Concentration-time Curve - Tmax14.3 ± 6.36
PrimaryBlood Concentration-time Curve [AUC]

Area under the concentration-time curve

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Mean · hour*ng/mL
Blood Concentration-time Curve [AUC]
hour*ng/mLExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Blood Concentration-time Curve [AUC]568 ± 171
PrimaryTerminal Elimination Half-life [t1/2]

The apparent terminal elimination half-life was calculated.

Time frame:
60 days
Reported as:
Mean · hours
Terminal Elimination Half-life [t1/2]
hoursExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Terminal Elimination Half-life [t1/2]1100 ± 803

Adverse events

Collected over For this single-dose experimental study, adverse event data was collected from subjects for up to 60 days.. Non-serious events are listed at a 0% frequency threshold.

Adverse event summary by group
GroupDeathsSeriousOther
Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus0/8 (0%)0/8 (0%)8/8 (100%)
Most frequent other events
Showing 10 of 13
Most frequent other events
EventExperimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Decreased HemoglobinBlood and lymphatic system disorders3/8
Elevated AspartateGastrointestinal disorders3/8
HyperglycemiaGeneral disorders3/8
Elevated BilirubinBlood and lymphatic system disorders2/8
Decreased PlateletsBlood and lymphatic system disorders1/8
Elevated Alt/AstGastrointestinal disorders1/8
HypercalcemiaBlood and lymphatic system disorders1/8
HematuriaRenal and urinary disorders1/8
HypoglycemiaGeneral disorders1/8
HypokalemiaRenal and urinary disorders1/8

Baseline characteristics

Age, Continuous
Age, Continuous(years)Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Mean34.37 (22 to 43)
Sex: Female, Male
Sex: Female, Male(Participants)Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Female4
Male4
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)(Participants)Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
Hispanic or Latino6
Not Hispanic or Latino2
Unknown or Not Reported0
Race (NIH/OMB)
Race (NIH/OMB)(Participants)Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
American Indian or Alaska Native0
Asian0
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander0
Black or African American3
White5
More than one race0
Unknown or Not Reported0
Region of Enrollment
Region of Enrollment(participants)Experimental: Sustained Release Injectable Tacrolimus
United States8
08

Study locations

1 site
  • Worldwide Clinical Trials
    San Antonio, Texas 78217, United States
09

References and documents

Study documents

  • Protocol and statistical analysis plan · Jul 2, 2018

Documents are hosted by the registry — open the source record to download them.

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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Aug 13, 2019, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03626714
Lead sponsor
Auritec Pharmaceuticals
Collaborators
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Aug 13, 2018
Start date
Oct 16, 2018
Primary completion
Jan 5, 2019
Completion
Jan 5, 2019
Results posted
Jun 11, 2019
Last update
Aug 13, 2019

Study contacts

George J Atiee, MD
principal investigator · Worldwide Clinical Trials

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Jul 2019. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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