Anti-IL-17A blockade did not significantly reduce inflammatory lesions in a placebo-controlled pilot study in adult patients with moderate to severe acne

Background: CJM112 is a potent anti-IL-17A monoclonal antibody, whose clinical efficacy in psoriasis was recently documented. This study aimed to assess the effect of IL-17A blockade, using CJM112, in patients with moderate to severe acne. Methods: A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, proof-of-concept study was conducted on patients with moderate to severe acne. Patients received CJM112 300 mg, 75 mg, or placebo subcutaneously during Treatment Period 1 (0–12 weeks). Patients receiving placebo were re-randomized to receive CJM112 300 mg or 75 mg during Treatment Period 2 (12–24 weeks). The primary endpoint was the number of inflammatory facial lesions at Week 12. Results: As the futility criterion was met during the interim analysis, only 52/75 (69.3%) patients were recruited. In total, 48/52 (92.3%) and 26/41 (63.4%) completed Treatment Periods 1 and 2, respectively. All groups exhibited a reduction in facial inflammatory lesions, with no difference observed between CJM112 and placebo (CJM112 300 mg 27.6 ± 20.7; CJM112 75 mg 30.4 ± 34.8; placebo 23.6 ± 13.6; primary endpoint). Additionally, no differences were observed between groups in other secondary and exploratory endpoints at Week 12. Conclusions: Anti-IL-17A therapy was not significantly different compared to the placebo in reducing inflammatory lesions in patients with moderate to severe acne.