Two patients die in now-halted study of Audentes gene therapy

Dive Brief:

• Two children with a rare neuromuscular disease have died after receiving a high dose of a gene therapy in a clinical trial run by Audentes Therapeutics, according to two letters sent by the company to patient groups.
• Both of the children suffered liver problems that ultimately led to sepsis. The most recent death occurred this month, though the letters revealed Audentes halted dosing of new patients before either occurred. The Food and Drug Administration subsequently placed the study on a formal clinical hold.
• The gene therapy, called AT132, is designed to treat X-linked myotubular myopathy, a deadly disease caused by mutations in a single gene. Audentes, which was bought by Japan's Astellas Pharma for $3 billion in December, aimed to submit the treatment for approval this year, but those plans are now on hold, according to the letter.

Dive Insight:

Gene therapy has emerged rapidly in recent years because the field overcame safety concerns — most notably, the tragic death of teenager Jesse Gelsinger in a clinical trial in 1999 — that cooled initial optimism and slowed research...