Clinical Research Directory

Study of Intravenous ZMA001 in Healthy Subjects

Background: A number of diseases can cause a type of lung injury called pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Most people who develop PAH do not survive more than a few years. A new study drug (ZMA001) may help. ZMA001 is a monoclonal antibody. This type of drug consists of proteins, made in a facility, that are very similar to proteins in a human body. But before giving ZMA001 to people sick with PAH, researchers want to find out how the drug affects healthy people. Objective: To test a drug (ZMA001) in healthy volunteers. Eligibility: Healthy adults aged 18 to 60 years. Design: Participants will be screened. They will have a physical exam with blood tests. They will have a urine test for drug use. They will have a test of their heart function. Participants will come to the clinic for 1 inpatient visit of up to 48 hours. ZMA001 is a liquid administered through a tube attached to a needle inserted into a vein in the arm. Participants will receive this drug only once, during their inpatient stay. Some participants will receive the drug; others will receive a placebo in Cohort 1 only. A placebo is a treatment that looks just like the real drug but contains no medicine. Participants will not know which treatment they are getting in Cohort 1. Cohorts 2-4 will receive a single dose of the study drug, administered through a tube attached to a needle inserted into a vein in the arm. After a screening visit, participants will have 1 inpatient visit and up to 8 outpatient visits over 16 weeks after receiving the treatment. Blood draws and other tests will be repeated. Each outpatient visit is approximately 2 hours long. This study is the first time ZMA001 will be administered to people.

Right Ventricular Compensation With Sotatercept: A Prospective Single Arm Open Label Phase 4 Study to Evaluate the Effects of Sotatercept on Right Ventricular Function in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (RECOMPENSE)

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a progressive disease characterized by vascular remodelling resulting in elevated pressures in the pulmonary artery (PA). This elevated pressure ultimately leads to fulminant right heart failure. Current therapeutic options are limited and are centred around vasodilatory medications such as phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors and prostacyclin. While these medications allow for the widening of blood vessels that are narrowed due to remodelling, they have no effect on the remodelling itself. Sotatercept is a novel medication which targets the BMPR2/TGF-β pathway and restore a pro- and anti- proliferative balance to ultimately counteract vascular remodelling. Recent phase 2 and 3 trials showed that treatment with sotatercept led to lower resistance and pressure in the pulmonary vasculature and improved exercise tolerance. However, these results were not coupled with an increase in cardiac output, a change that is seen with other PAH-medications with a primarily vasodilatory effect. These results suggest that cardiac work is reduced and cardiac efficiency is improved in patients being treated with sotatercept, in contrast with conventional PAH therapies. This is a potentially beneficial effect that may result in improved disease control in the long-term. Our study aims to explore the effect of sotatercept on cardiac work and function. We hypothesize that the effects of sotatercept are more beneficial for cardiac function than that of traditional PAH medications. All participants included in the trial will undergo a screening visit in which it will be checked that all inclusion criteria and no exclusion criteria are met. The screening visit involves a physical exam, blood draw, 6-minute walk test, right heart catheterization (RHC) and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI) with contrast to assess fibrosis. Upon inclusion, all participants will receive a subcutaneous injection of sotatercept starting at a dose of 0.3 mg/kg. Participants will return to the hospital every three weeks for a blood draw, physical examination and an adverse event review. If the laboratory values (specifically haemoglobin and platelet counts) stay stable after the first dose, the dosage will be escalated to 0.7 mg/kg. The dose will not be escalated beyond 0.7 mg/kg. After 24 weeks of receiving sotatercept, there will be an end of treatment visit including a physical exam, 6-minute walk test, right heart catheterization (RHC) and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI) with contrast material.

Home Rehabilitation Improves Cardiac Effort in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether a home rehabilitation program for patients diagnosed with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) will decrease Cardiac Effort (number of heart beats used during 6-minute walk test/walk distance) and improve quality of life. Ultimately, this information could help improve the management of patients with PAH.

Implementing the Wuqinxi on Patients With Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Aims and objective: The primary objective of this study was to assess the effects of a traditional Chinese Qigong practice known as Wuqinxi on activity tolerance，negative emotions and quality of life in pulmonary arterial hypertension patients. Methods: In the current prospective, randomized-controlled clinical trial, 60 patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension were randomly assigned to one of two groups: intervention or control. Participants in the intervention group received targeted pharmacological therapy and five sessions of qigong exercise per week. In contrast, individuals in the control group underwent targeted drug therapy and routine care. Observe the change in exercise tolerance as measured by the 6-minute walking distance (6MWD). Serological indicators (n-terminal brain natriuretic peptide precursor, NT-pro BNP) ,negative emotions(PHQ-9/GAD-7)and the MOS Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) or emPHasis-10 were used to assess patients condition and quality of life.