Ablynx's AbbVie-Partnered Lupus Candidate Hits End Of Road

Ablynx NV's anti-IL-6 nanobody, vobarilizumab, has failed to meet its primary endpoint in a Phase II trial in lupus and further development of the molecule is unlikely after patient deaths – the news is a blow to Sanofi, which recently agreed to acquire the Belgian biotech for its Nanobody platform technology.

In the Phase II STEADY trial, vobarilizumab failed to meet the primary endpoint of dose response at 24 weeks in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)