Sixty Degrees Pharmaceuticals Inc. (SXTPW), a pharmaceutical company specializing in infectious disease treatments, on Wednesday announced the expansion of its clinical trial for tafenoquine, a potential treatment for babesiosis, through a new collaboration with Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
This double-blind, placebo-controlled study aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of tafenoquine in combination with standard care for hospitalized babesiosis patients.
The trial is part of an ongoing clinical effort at Tufts Medical Center, Yale University, and Rhode Island Hospital and will focus on two primary endpoints: time to sustained clinical resolution of symptoms and time to molecular cure as measured by an FDA-approved nucleic acid test (NAT).
Tafenoquine, currently approved for malaria prophylaxis under the brand name ARAKODA, has shown promise in preclinical studies for treating babesiosis.
With cases of babesiosis on the rise, especially among elderly and immunocompromised individuals, the expanded study will help accelerate patient recruitment during the 2025 tick season.
Geoffrey Dow, CEO of Sixty Degrees Pharmaceuticals, emphasized the importance of this collaboration, stating, "We are excited to work with Brigham and Women's Hospital to explore tafenoquine as a potential treatment for severe babesiosis, which continues to pose a significant health threat."
The expanded trial will recruit 24 to 33 patients starting in the summer of 2025 and is part of Sixty Degrees' broader efforts to establish tafenoquine as a treatment for babesiosis, a market opportunity estimated to exceed 400,000 patients by 2035.
Currently, SXTPW is trading at $0.02 down by 13.79%.
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