Bone defects were seen since birth — and following injury — in mouse models of hemophilia A and B, but not in Von Willebrand (VWD) disease mice, a study shows. Researchers said further study into the potential mechanisms of primary bone deficits in hemophilia may help in…

A major complication in scientists’ efforts to treat hemophilia A by replacing a missing or defective clotting factor is an immune response to the treatment. Researchers have discovered a connection between the body’s production of pro-inflammatory molecules known as cytokines and its immune response to clotting factor VIII therapy. They used…

Preventive treatment with Hemlibra (emicizumab) improves health-related quality of life (HQRoL) in children with hemophilia A who develop inhibitors, or neutralizing antibodies, against engineered factor VIII (FVIII), an essential blood-clotting protein, a new analysis of a Phase 3 trial shows. Such Hemlibra therapy also reduces the burden on…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Hemlibra (emicizumab-kxwh) for routine prophylaxis to prevent or lessen bleeding episodes in children and adults with hemophilia A with factor VIII inhibitors, Genentech announced. Hemlibra is first newly approved treatment for this patient group in almost 20 years, the…

The risk of spontaneous bleeding episodes in patients with severe hemophilia A receiving preventive treatment changes over time and can be influenced by treatment history and other patient-related factors, a study has found. As such, the choice of an individual preventive — or prophylactic — regimen should take…

Sigilon Therapeutics’ candidate cell therapy for hemophilia A, called SIG-001, delivers sustained production of factor VIII for over six months and corrects bleeding in a hemophilia A mouse model. These results were shared at the 2019 American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) Annual Meeting, in a…

The European Commission has approved Hemlibra (emicizumab) for routine preventive treatment of bleeding episodes in people who have hemophilia A with factor VIII inhibitors. The antibody therapy is designed to restore the factor VIII, which is deficient in hemophilia A. Hemlibra is being co-developed by Japan’s Chugai Pharmaceuticals, Switzerland’s…

Testing levels of thrombin — an enzyme that helps blood clot — in people with acquired hemophilia A could help doctors fine-tune care for these patients when both clot-promoting and blood-thinning medications are used. That’s the conclusion drawn by researchers in the Netherlands, who found that thrombin testing in…

In hemophilia A, the most significant therapeutic complication is the development of antibodies against factor VIII (FVIII) that inhibit its coagulant activity and make the therapy ineffective. The plasma-derived porcine FVIII product represents a therapy with low levels of autoantibodies and successful management of bleeding when compared to human plasma-derived products.

Note: This story was updated Jan. 8, 2021, to clarify that the second set of experiments in mice and non-human primates used a research construct, not the gene therapy. Generation Bio has announced new data showing that its investigational non-viral gene therapy platform can increase levels of the clotting…