According to new clinical data released by Precision BioSciences at the EASL Congress today, their gene-editing therapy, PBGENE-HBV, successfully eliminated the virus’s “cccDNA” in liver biopsies.
This is the first time a therapeutic agent has provided clinical evidence of directly inactivating the root cause of chronic Hepatitis B infection.
The study data, presented by Dr. Man-Fung Yuen, indicates that in 100% of patients with detectable pgRNA at baseline, the treatment achieved a complete loss of the biomarker.
For context, current standard-of-care treatments only suppress the virus and are achieved in fewer than 3% of patients, whereas this trial aims for a finite, permanent cure.
The therapy utilizes the company’s proprietary ARCUS platform, which demonstrated an 80% editing rate of remaining cccDNA after only three administrations.
While the biotech sector is notoriously volatile, this “biomarker-guided” approach aims to move the medical field away from lifelong drug dependence.