Does brepocitinib benefit patients with psoriatic arthritis?

Brepocitinib is an oral drug that inhibits certain enzymes involved in inflammation—called tyrosine kinase 2 and Janus kinase 1—and is being tested for the treatment of several immunological diseases. A phase IIb randomized clinical trial published in Arthritis & Rheumatology recently generated promising efficacy and safety data for the use of brepocitinib in adults with moderately-to-severely active psoriatic arthritis.

Overall, 218 participants were randomized and received brepocitinib or placebo for 1 year. After 16 weeks of treatment, 30 and 60 mg daily doses of brepocitinib were superior to placebo at reducing signs and symptoms of psoriatic arthritis. Response rates were maintained or improved through week 52. Side effects were mostly mild or moderate.

"These data demonstrate striking efficacy and confirm the relevance of multiple signaling pathways dependent on the kinases targeted by brepocitinib in psoriatic arthritis," said corresponding author Philip Mease, MD, of Swedish Medical Center/Providence St. Joseph Health and the University of Washington, in Seattle. "The safety is also reassuring for brepocitinib in this study."