Arbutus Biopharma doses first subject in Phase 1 trial with AB-161

Arbutus Biopharma announced that the first subject has been dosed in the Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of AB-161, Arbutus’ oral RNA destabilizer. AB-161 is being developed for use in an all-oral combination regimen to potentially provide a functional cure for patients with hepatitis B virus, HBV. "We are pleased to move AB-161 into Phase 1 clinical development," said William Collier, President and Chief Executive Officer of Arbutus Biopharma. "AB-161 was designed to reduce HBsAg levels and inhibit viral replication by selectively inhibiting essential host proteins that are important in stabilizing HBV RNAs from degradation. We remain committed to advancing our pipeline of assets to develop a functional cure for chronic HBV and look forward to sharing the initial data from the Phase 1 clinical trial of AB-161 in the second half of 2023." Initial data from this Phase 1 single-ascending dose clinical trial in healthy subjects are expected in the second half of 2023.