Knopp Biosciences Reports Positive Results From the Phase 2 EXHALE Trial of Oral Dexpramipexole in Moderate-to-Severe Eosinophilic Asthma at ATS 2021 05/17/2021 | 06:01am EDT Send by mail : Message : Dexpramipexole was well tolerated, with 97% of drug-treated patients completing the primary assessment phase Knopp Biosciences LLC today announced detailed results of its positive Phase 2 dose-ranging EXHALE trial of the novel oral eosinophil-lowering drug dexpramipexole in patients with moderate-to-severe asthma. The data were presented in a virtual poster session at the ATS 2021 International Conference. The EXHALE trial was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of dexpramipexole in patients with moderate-to-severe asthma and blood absolute eosinophil count (AEC) ≥300/µL. Dexpramipexole study drug at oral doses of 75 mg/day, 150 mg/day, or 300 mg/day was added to standard of care. The primary endpoint was change in AEC from Baseline to Week 12 compared to placebo. Eosinophils, a type of white-blood cell, are validated as a therapeutic target in asthma as evidenced by the regulatory approval of multiple eosinophil-lowering biologics. The EXHALE trial enrolled 103 patients from 21 U.S. study centers. The majority of patients had severe asthma as classified by the Global Initiative for Asthma. Minority populations represented 23% of the patients enrolled.