Conbercept (KH-902) for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration

Abstract

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive, degenerative disease of the retina that occurs with increasing incidence with age and ranks third among the global causes of visual impairment. VEGF has been implicated in the development and progression of neovascular AMD. Drugs that block VEGF, leading to regression of the abnormal blood vessels, are the mainstay of treatment of neovascular AMD, particularly for subfoveal neovascular lesions. Anti-VEGF agents currently in use in neovascular AMD are pegaptanib (Macugen^®), ranibizumab (Lucentis^®), bevacizumab (Avastin^®) and a soluble VEGF receptor decoy aflibercept (Eylea^®). Recently, China Food and Drug Administration have approved conbercept for the treatment of neovascular AMD in China. Conbercept appears to offer yet another anti-VEGF drug for use in neovascular AMD. However, there is still a need for large, well-designed, randomized clinical trials to ensure its safety and efficacy.

Keywords:

• aflibercept
• age-related macular degeneration
• bevacizumab
• conbercept
• pegaptanib
• ranibizumab

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Key issues

• Anti-VEGF agents currently in use in neovascular AMD are pegaptanib (Macugen^®), ranibizumab (Lucentis^®), bevacizumab (Avastin^®) and a soluble VEGF receptor decoy aflibercept (Eylea^®). China’s Food and Drug Administration have recently approved conbercept for the treatment of neovascular AMD in China.

• Conbercept is a recombinant fusion protein like aflibercept, designed as a receptor decoy, but compared with aflibercept it has a higher binding affinity.

• Conbercept blocks all VEGF-A isoforms, as well as VEGF-B, and PlGF.

• The AURORA study; a Phase II, randomized, double-masked clinical trial of conbercept, involving 105 participants, showed promising improvement in vision at 52 weeks and was generally safe and well tolerated.

• While conbercept seems well tolerated in clinical trials, provides visual acuity results similar to other anti-VEGF agents, the number of participants in the clinical trials with conbercept has been small.

• It will be important to await larger randomized trials and longer follow-up.