VIDEO: Fezolinetant drops testosterone levels in PCOS

CHICAGO – Testosterone levels dropped by one third for women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and hyperandrogenemia when they received a centrally acting medication currently in development. The proof-of-concept phase 2 trial, which saw no concerning safety signals for the medication, fezolinetant, sets the stage for a larger, and perhaps longer, study to learn more about the neurokinin 3 receptor antagonist’s efficacy against PCOS.

“The primary outcome for this phase 2 trial was to see if we could lower testosterone levels in these PCOS patients,” said Graeme Fraser, PhD, chief scientific officer for Ogeda, discussing the poster he and his colleagues presented at the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society.

“Testosterone levels decreased: Measured at about 3 hours postdose, which is the approximate pharmacokinetic Cmax [maximum serum concentration], there was … a more than 30% decrease in testosterone levels,” said Dr. Fraser. By week 12, he said, “there was a very consistent decrease of 30% of testosterone levels. So that was quite good; we successfully hit the primary outcome.”

At 12 weeks, the higher dose of fezolinetant decreased testosterone by 0.64 nmol/L, compared with the 0.04 nmol/L seen with placebo (P less than .01).