Equillium Announces Feedback from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
LA JOLLA, Calif.--- Equillium, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging a deep understanding of immunobiology to develop novel therapeutics to treat severe autoimmune and inflammatory disorders, today announced that the company has received feedback from its Type D meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to discuss the regulatory pathway for Accelerated Approval, as well as the company’s filing for Breakthrough Therapy designation for itolizumab for first-line treatment of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD).
The FDA declined to grant Breakthrough Therapy designation or support an Accelerated Approval pathway based on the EQUATOR study data. The FDA highlighted its attention to achieving response outcomes at Day 29, per existing FDA guidance; however, the FDA did indicate openness to evaluating other endpoints, including longer term outcomes, provided independent data supports the validity of such endpoints.
“We are clearly disappointed with the FDA feedback that focused almost exclusively on Day 29 outcomes,” said Bruce Steel, chief executive officer at Equillium. “While itolizumab did not demonstrate improvements by Day 29, we believe the very favorable safety profile and totality of longer-term data were clinically compelling and suggest itolizumab may confer a meaningful benefit for patients suffering from this severe orphan disease where mortality rates remain very high. Based on this feedback we plan to accelerate closure of the EQUATOR study. We are very grateful to all of the patients, clinical sites, and our partners who helped us conduct this important study.”
“It has long been the priority of Equillium to leverage corporate development to expand our pipeline and provide strategic options for the company. We will continue to evaluate options to advance or partner itolizumab for future clinical development that will likely be needed to support approval, as well as explore options with the rest of our novel therapeutic candidates directed towards immuno-inflammatory diseases,” continued Mr. Steel.
Equillium’s cash and cash equivalents as of March 31, 2025 totaled $14.5 million, which the Company believes are capable of funding operations into the third quarter of 2025, based on certain assumptions and estimates that may prove to be inaccurate.
About Itolizumab
Itolizumab is a clinical-stage, first-in-class anti-CD6 monoclonal antibody that selectively targets the CD6-ALCAM signaling pathway to downregulate pathogenic T effector cells while preserving T regulatory cells critical for maintaining a balanced immune response. This pathway plays a central role in modulating the activity and trafficking of T cells that drive a number of immuno-inflammatory diseases.
About Equillium
Equillium is a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging a deep understanding of immunobiology to develop novel therapeutics to treat severe autoimmune and inflammatory disorders with high unmet medical need. The company’s pipeline consists of several novel immunomodulatory assets and product platform targeting immuno-inflammatory pathways.
