Albireo $ALBO, a Boston biotech that took an unconventional route to treating the fatty liver disease, announced yesterday that they were ending NASH development after they received disappointing results from a Phase II study. Just last week CEO Ron Cooper, on their Q2 call, talked up their offbeat approach and the potential for their lead molecule to be used in combination with agents now in development at other countries.
BOSTON, Aug. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Albireo Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALBO), a clinical-stage orphan pediatric liver disease company developing novel bile acid modulators, today announced topline results from the Phase 2 proof- of-concept clinical trial evaluating elobixibat, its ileal bile acid transporter (IBAT) inhibitor currently approved in Japan for chronic constipation, for the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Following promising results in preclinical studies, the Phase 2 study achieved the primary endpoint of reduction of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) but did not achieve proof-of-concept for other key NASH measures.