A Phase 2/3 interventional study of RLS-0071 and Placebo in Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy, sponsored by ReAlta Life Sciences, Inc.. Recruiting at 22 sites in United States. Open to participants aged Up to 10 Hours. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-05.
Sponsored by ReAlta Life Sciences, Inc. · Phase 2/3, Interventional, and Treatment
Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) affects approximately 4,000 to 12,000 persons annually in the United States. Mortality from HIE has been reported up to 60%, with at least 25% of survivors left with significant neurocognitive disability. Despite this vital unmet medical need, no pharmacological adjunct or alternative therapy has proven beneficial in improving outcomes in neonatal HIE.
RLS-0071 is a novel peptide being developed for the treatment of neonatal HIE. This study is designed to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of RLS-0071 in the treatment of newborns with moderate or severe HIE.
This is a Phase 2/3, two-stage, multisite, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to assess the safety, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of RLS-0071 in newborns with moderate or severe HIE undergoing therapeutic hypothermia, with long-term follow-up of up to 24 months of age.
The study consists of 2 sequential stages for all participants in all cohorts. In Stage 1, participants will receive either ascending doses of RLS-0071 or a matched volume of placebo every 8 hours (q8h) for 72 hours in addition to standard of care treatment, including therapeutic hypothermia. During and after the dosing period, participants will be monitored and assessed through Day 14, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements of brain injury. After completion of Stage 1, participants will transition to Stage 2 of the study for long-term observation, including developmental assessments, until participants reach 24 months of age.
The Phase 2 portion of the STAR study is designed to inform dose escalation and correlation analysis to affirm that MRI measurement of brain injury in HIE babies is predictive of long-term neurocognitive outcomes at 24 months. The Phase 2 portion of the study consists of Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 subsets. The first recruited cohorts, consisting of Cohort 1a (moderate HIE) and 1b (severe HIE), will receive a dose of 3 mg/kg RLS-0071 or a matched volume of placebo. A Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) will review available clinical safety and PK data from Cohort 1 subsets with completed study intervention, and make a recommendation on whether to escalate the dose for moderate and severe HIE cohorts. The Sponsor will consider the DSMB recommendation to make their decision on dose escalation in addition to their own evaluation of all available safety and PK data. If the decision is made to escalate, Cohort 2 subsets (2a [moderate] and 2b [severe]) will be recruited to receive an escalated dose of RLS-0071 (10 mg/kg) or a matched volume of placebo. Following the completion of study intervention for each Cohort 2 subset (2a [moderate] or 2b [severe]), the DSMB will review available safety and PK data and make a recommendation whether to expand enrollment for Cohort 2+.
The Phase 3 portion of the study is designed to generate data focusing on assessing the efficacy of RLS-0071 compared to placebo in reducing HIE brain injury as measured by MRI and improving the long-term neurocognitive outcomes at 24 months. The Phase 3 portion of the study consists of Cohort 2+ (2a+ [moderate] or 2b+ [severe]) and Cohort 3 (3a [moderate] or 3b [severe]), with participants recruited in these cohorts receiving 10 mg/kg RLS-0071 or a matched volume of placebo.
261 studies on the registry are indexed under Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain; 95 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 173 is above the median of 50 across 156 interventional studies indexed under Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain.
Browse Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain studies →ReAlta Life Sciences, Inc. is the lead sponsor of 6 studies on the registry; 2 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
The criteria were revised on the registry on Nov 5, 2026. See what changed
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Moderate or severe encephalopathy based on at least one risk of encephalopathy from criterion (a) and one clinical sign of encephalopathy from criterion (b):
Risk of encephalopathy (either):
OR
Clinical signs of encephalopathy (either/both):
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Clinically significant
Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Doses of RLS-0071 to be administered every 8 hours (q8h), for a total of 10 doses over 72 hours.
Drug: RLS-0071
Doses of sterile saline (sodium chloride, 0.9%) to be administered every 8 hours (q8h), for a total of 10 doses over 72 hours.
Drug: Placebo
RLS-0071 (unit strength 10 mg/mL) will be administered by infusion for a dose level of 3 or 10 mg/kg. Planned infusion duration is 10 minutes for all dose levels.
Placebo control (commercial sterile saline) will be administered by infusion at a volume matched to RLS-0071 (3 or 10 mg/kg). Planned infusion duration is 10 minutes for all matched dose levels.
Extent of acute brain injury at Day 4 (+3), assessed through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), using a standardized scoring system
Brain injury is assessed using the Weeke score (Weeke 2018), which includes scoring extent of injury across 4 domains (Grey matter, White matter/cortex, Cerebellum, and Additional). A score of 0 indicates a normal brain MRI, whereas the maximum score of 57 indicates extensive bilateral injury.
Time frame: Day 4 (up to Day 7)
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Plan to share: No
Started Jul 2023 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Dec 2026, 41 months after the start.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Studies of the drug tested here: RLS-0071
ReAlta Life Sciences, Inc.