Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD)

A Clinical Study to Assess the Efficacy and Safety of Leriglitazone in Adults Male Subjects with Cerebral Adrenoleukodystrophy.

Cognitive impairment often appears in neurodegenerative diseases, and it is expected to further study the mechanism of sleep disorders associated with the progression of neurodegenerative diseases by exploring the clinical manifestations, imaging, and biological marker changes of sleep disorders in neurodegenerative diseases.

The main aim of this study is to assess and describe the safety outcomes, including newly diagnosed malignancies, of patients with CALD treated with eli-cel in the post-marketing setting (tradename Skysona) and to describe major functional disability (MFD)-free survival over time in participants with more advanced early active CALD. All enrolled participants with CALD treated with eli-cel in the post-marketing setting will be followed in this study for 15 years. No investigational drug product will be administered in this study. This study will enroll 120 participants with CALD treated with eli-cel in the post-marketing setting. A subpopulation of 24 participants with more advanced early active CALD will be specifically enrolled as required by the US FDA as a condition of accelerated approval and will be considered as a separate cohort for effectiveness outcomes.

This is a prospective, non-therapeutic protocol designed to create and maintain a registry of participants with Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) and known/presumed mutation for ALD. This study also involves maintaining a prospective biorepository to collect and store buccal swab, blood, stool and urine samples as well. In this protocol, pediatric (including infants), adolescents and adult patients with confirmed or presumed ALD (based on positive VLCFA testing and/or confirmed mutation) will be offered potential study participation. Additionally, presumed mutation for ALD (based on pedigree or confirmed mutation) will be offered potential study participation. After appropriate consent (online or in-person), subjects will be requested to provide a medical history (with authorization of release of medical records), longitudinal biospecimens, and permission to perform laboratory analyses on these samples. The overall goal is to understand the natural disease course in affected and unaffected patients (identified patients and relatives with a diagnosis of ALD), as well as women with ALD to assemble a resource of clinical, medical, and biological data from the participants. This study also aims to understand the outcomes of this disease, as well as possibly develop biomarkers to identify prognostic markers for disease progression, which may help develop effective interventions. The biospecimen bank and registry will provide access to samples and data for the ongoing studies as well as will provide an important resource for the future research.

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) from a healthy donor can cure or alleviate a broad spectrum of non-malignant disorders (NMD). Although reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) regimens promise decreased treatment-related morbidity and mortality, graft failure and infections are limiting the use of RIC in chemotherapy-naive patients. Dr. Szabolcs have completed several trials to evaluate a novel RIC regimen of alemtuzumab, hydroxyurea, fludarabine, melphalan, and thiotepa. The last trial at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of a highly effective and biologically rational chemotherapy-based RIC regimen paired with simple alemtuzumab dosing strata was tested and resulted in outstanding survival and remarkably low rates of graft failure. The favorable outcome described may serve as a toxicity and efficacy reference for emerging gene therapy strategies as well. This prospective collection of clinical data will allow the investigators to further assess engraftment, GVHD, immunosuppressant use and overall survival in this patient population.

Adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) is the most prevalent rare genetic disorder affecting the brain's white matter. It is caused by mutations in the ABCD1 gene, which encodes a transporter involved in the degradation of very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA). As a result, VLCFA accumulate in tissues and plasma, serving as a pathognomonic biomarker for diagnosis. The disease manifests in two main forms: i) adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN), characterized by chronic progressive spastic paraplegia due to distal axonopathy, and ii) cerebral ALD (cALD), a rapidly progressing and fatal demyelinating leukodystrophy. Current therapeutic options are inadequate, limited to bone marrow transplants and gene therapy for patients with cerebral inflammation. No treatment is available for AMN, which affects 60% of patients. We have discovered that excess VLCFA leads to mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and oxidative damage, a major factor driving pathogenesis. More recently, we found that the main endogenous response to oxidative damage (the NRF-2 pathway) is impaired in X-ALD. Preclinical tests with an NRF2 activator, specifically the current treatment for multiple sclerosis, dimethyl fumarate (DMF/Tecfidera), showed promising results. All major molecular and cellular pathogenic mechanisms were restored, including: i) mitochondrial function and biogenesis, ii) redox homeostasis, iii) bioenergetic failure, iv) neuroinflammation, along with axonal damage and clinical signs of the disease such as locomotor disability. Consequently, we obtained an international patent for repurposing DMF for X-ALD (US15/957,601) and Orphan Drug Designation by the EMA in 2020 (EMA/OD/0000010028). Now we are translating this knowledge into a randomized phase IIb/III double-blind placebo-controlled study over 36 months for 40 AMN patients, to determine if DMF is effective in these patients. For the first 24 months, patients will be divided into two groups (placebo and active treatment) in a ratio of 1:2. A 12-month extension phase will follow, during which all patients will receive treatment. Furthermore, we aim to elucidate the molecular mechanisms driving the disease and dissect the redox-inflammatory effects of DMF using an integrative multi-omics approach, which will involve single-cell RNA sequencing in PBMC, and lipidomics in plasma. The clinical and molecular data from historical national and international AMN and cALD cohorts will be pooled to identify markers of severity and progression. Our goal is to address unmet needs in AMN while generating novel fundamental knowledge that will be useful for this and other common axonopathies.

Patients accepting participation (after signing ICF) will be followed up to at least 2 years or until they started treatment for X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) or withdraw consent, whichever occurs first. Follow-up will be extended beyond 2 years if deemed appropriate after an interim report. Tests and questionnaires will be assessed at baseline and yearly. If the study is extended, beyond 2 years, patients will be assessed at 1-year intervals. At baseline visit and follow-up visits, patients will undergo an MRI of the brain and the spinal cord and assessments of body sway, EDSS, ADL, pain VAS and SF-36 questionnaire. Plasma biomarkers will be assessed from samples obtained through routine blood draw and a monthly falls diary will be provided each visit to be completed once a month. This study will not assess any specific medicinal product or intervention, and the study will not interfere with that prescribed in clinical practice.

Adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN) is an X-linked inherited metabolic rare disease caused by mutations in the ABCD1 gene, with an incidence rate of only 1 in 50,000. Currently, it is regarded as a special type of adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), and AMN is the most dominant disease subtype affecting adult patients. Due to the special phenomenon of skewed X-inactivation, female heterozygotes may also have spinal cord neuropathy. Such mutations can lead to the accumulation of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA) in the blood and organs, mainly resulting in demyelination of the central nervous system and lesions in the adrenal cortex. As the disease progresses, the strength of the lower limbs and the passive range of motion of the ankle joints of patients will gradually decline. The deterioration of hip flexor muscle weakness is closely associated with a slower walking speed and an increased degree of disability. Most patients will also experience peripheral nerve involvement and impairment of vibration sensation. Hypertonia of the lower limbs will gradually develop into a decline in both muscle strength and muscle tone, and finally progress from spastic paralysis to flaccid paralysis. However, the current commonly used treatment regimens for AMN still have deficiencies, and it is necessary to seek effective treatment methods to alleviate patients' symptoms and improve their quality of life. Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) involves implanting a thin electrode (either strip-shaped or needle-shaped) into the epidural space within the spinal canal at the corresponding spinal segments, adjacent to the posterior columns of the spinal cord. The electrode is then connected to a nerve stimulator implanted subcutaneously in the iliac region, and electrical pulses are used to stimulate the conduction of the posterior columns of the spinal cord and the sensory neurons in the posterior horns for treatment purposes. This blocks the transmission of pain signals from the spinal cord to the brain, preventing them from reaching the cerebral cortex, thereby achieving the goal of pain control. Previous studies have demonstrated that, in addition to having significant therapeutic effects in analgesia, SCS has also been investigated in aspects such as the recovery of lower limb function in paraplegia and the recovery of upper limb function in hemiplegia after stroke, and it has improved the corresponding motor dysfunctions to a certain extent. For the problem of motor dysfunction in AMN, there is currently no good treatment method, and spinal cord stimulation may serve as a potential treatment approach. Based on the above, this study attempts to further explore the potential therapeutic effect and related treatment mechanisms of SCS on AMN through evaluating the efficacy of SCS in treating motor disorders of muscle tone and strength in the lower limbs of patients with AMN. In the study, 10 patients with AMN will be recruited. After patients are enrolled in the group, preoperative evaluations will be conducted. And after the first evaluations of motor function, neurological assessment and other relevant examinations, the implantation of lumbar spinal cord nerve stimulator and pulse generator will be carried out in our hospital. After the completion of the implantation surgery, depending on the patients' recovery status, they will be transferred to each center for subsequent rehabilitation treatment within one to two weeks, and then the electrical stimulation treatment will be initiated by turning on the device. Before turning on the device, the second corresponding examinations and evaluations will be conducted. The third and fourth corresponding examinations and evaluations will be carried out one week and four weeks after turning on the device, respectively. Patients will be discharged four weeks after turning on the device, and then return to the hospital for the fifth and sixth corresponding examinations and evaluations four weeks and six months after discharge, respectively. Through the statistical analysis of self-controlled comparison before and after the trial, the efficacy and safety of SCS in improving lower limb motor dysfunction in patients with AMN will be evaluated.

This study will inform clinicians in quantitatively assessing baseline disease severity, selectively applying the appropriate exercise to the disease pathology, and measuring efficacy of the exercise intervention. As part of this overall goal, the aims are to: A. Determine feasibility of remotely supervised exercise programs. B. Optimize remote outcome measures for clinical monitoring and towards future clinical trials. C. Measure changes in balance and walking post intervention.

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) is a devastating neurological disorder caused by mutations in the ABCD1 gene that encodes a peroxisomal ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABCD1). ABCD1 is responsible for transport of CoA-activated very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA) into the peroxisome for degradation. X-ALD is clinically characterized with two main phenotypes: adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN) and the inflammatory cerebral ALD. This disease presents most commonly in males. Approximately 50% of heterozygote females show some symptoms later in life. Approximately two-thirds of ALD patients will present with the childhood cerebral form of the disease, which is the most severe form. The disease is characterized by normal development in early childhood, followed by rapid degeneration to a vegetative state. ALD patients are normally treated with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) from a matched healthy donor. However, HSCT must be performed at a very early stage of the disease, which limits the therapeutic opportunities for juvenile or adult forms of ALD. This trial aims to treat ALD using a safety and efficiency improved self-inactivating lentiviral vector carrying a functional ABCD1 gene via intrathecal (IT) and intravenous (IV) injections to directly correct the genetic defect. This protocol targets not only early stage patients but also patients with symptoms. The direct LV injection approach aims to correct the pathologies associated with this genetic defect, and the IT and IV LV injections substantially simplify the treatment process, which reduces the risk associated with myeloablative chemotherapy during the HSCT treatment. The objectives are to evaluate the safety of the advanced self-inactivating LV TYF-ABCD1, the direct in vivo gene transfer clinical protocol and the efficacy of the treatment, including assessment of vector distribution and the potential long-term correction of the ALD disease phenotype.