VirTus Respiratory Research Supports Development of Apollo Therapeutics’ APL-10456 from Preclinical Proof of Concept to Positive Phase 1 Data

LONDON — VirTus Respiratory Research Ltd, a specialist respiratory contract research organisation (CRO), founded by Imperial College London investigators Professor Sebastian Johnston and Dr Michael Edwards, today highlighted its role in the preclinical development of Apollo Therapeutics’ and Imperial’s APL-10456, following the announcement of positive initial data from the vaccine’s Phase 1 clinical trial.

VirTus has worked on the APL-10456 programme for more than five years, conducting more than 20 preclinical studies to support the selection, development and progression of the candidate, testing the cross-species immunogenicity and efficacy. This work included evaluating the efficacy of several vaccine candidates in mouse models of rhinovirus infection, helping to select APL-10456 and establish early proof of concept and generating preclinical evidence that informed its progression into first-in-human clinical development.

APL-10456 is a first-in-class, adjuvanted recombinant protein subunit vaccine designed to prevent rhinovirus-driven exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Developing a broadly protective rhinovirus vaccine has historically been challenging because of the approximately 180 genetically distinct rhinovirus strains across three species – RV-A, RV-B and RV-C.

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Apollo has announced that enrolment and dosing in the randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 1 study of APL-10456, involving 144 healthy participants, has completed. Initial data from Part A of the study showed that a single dose was well tolerated and highly immunogenic, inducing seroconversion and Th1-polarised, cross-reactive cellular immune responses against all three rhinovirus species.

These first-in-human findings are consistent with previously reported preclinical data demonstrating broad cross-strain immunity and rapid clearance of heterotypic rhinovirus, and represent an important milestone in the translation of the APL-10456 programme from preclinical research into clinical development.

The progression of APL-10456 demonstrates VirTus’s ability to support respiratory drug and vaccine development from early preclinical studies, to proof of concept, using specialist models of respiratory viral infection to help evaluate promising therapeutic approaches before they enter human studies.

VirTus Respiratory Research Ltd is a CRO co-led by Professor Sebastian Johnston and Dr Michael Edwards, both of Imperial College London, United Kingdom. VirTus is dedicated to accelerating the development of novel therapies for the treatment and prevention of respiratory virus infections, which are the leading cause of acute attacks (exacerbations) in chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, COPD and bronchiectasis.