Asivatrep cream as a new therapeutic option for atopic dermatitis

Published: October 1, 2021

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory pruritic skin disease that flares periodically and has a high prevalence of approximately 25% in children and 10% in adults, although it depends on the countries surveyed. Both genetic and environmental factors have been implicated as risk factors for the progression of AD. Asivatrep is a potent and selective antagonist of transient receptor potential vanilloid subfamily member 1 (TRPV1), which is well characterized in the skin and has been implicated in itch signaling and inflammation regulation.

In a recent article in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI), Park and colleagues investigated the use of asivatrep cream, the first-in-class topical TRPV1 antagonist, in adolescent and adult patients with AD. The present randomized-controlled trial investigated the efficacy and safety of 1% asivatrep cream in patients aged 12 years or older with mild-to-moderate AD over an 8-week period. The effects of treatment were measured by the Investigator’s Global Assessment (IGA), Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), and pruritus visual analogue scale tools.

The authors found that treatment with asivatrep cream resulted in marked and sustained relief of signs and pruritus associated with AD in adolescents and adults, along with an acceptable safety profile. Thirty-six percent (36%) of patients who received asivatrep had clear or almost clear skin at week 8, compared with 13% in the vehicle (cream with no active drug) group. Itch measured by peak pruritus visual analogue scale score was markedly reduced in those treated with asivatrep throughout the study period. Treatment with asivatrep cream was also well tolerated over the 8-week treatment period in patients with AD aged 12 years and older, and not associated with clinically significant application site reactions.

Asivatrep cream ameliorated signs and symptoms, with a favorable safety profile in patients with AD. Nonsteroidal asivatrep is a promising topical treatment for AD with a novel mechanism of action.

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI) is an official scientific journal of the AAAAI, and is the most-cited journal in the field of allergy and clinical immunology.

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