AusperBio begins patient dosing in trial of Hepatitis B siRNA candidate AHB-171

USA— AusperBio Therapeutics Inc. and Ausper Biopharma Co., Ltd. have begun dosing patients in a clinical study evaluating AHB-171, an investigational hepatocyte-targeted small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapy for chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

The companies, which operate together as AusperBio, are developing targeted oligonucleotide therapies for CHB and other diseases.

The latest milestone advances the company’s second clinical-stage therapeutic candidate and marks the first clinical programme built using its proprietary Au-HALO™ liver-targeting delivery technology and siRNA platform.

AHB-171 adds to AusperBio’s hepatitis B virus (HBV) pipeline alongside its lead clinical programme, AHB-137, an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) candidate.

The company is developing the two programmes as complementary approaches within its broader strategy of advancing next-generation oligonucleotide therapies.

Addressing an unmet need in hepatitis B

CHB remains a major global public health concern.

According to the World Health Organization’s Global Hepatitis Report 2024, about 254 million people worldwide were living with HBV, while approximately 1.2 million new infections occurred each year.

Although existing antiviral medicines can suppress HBV replication, they do not typically eliminate the virus.

As a result, patients may require long-term treatment, while achieving a functional cure remains an important unmet medical need.

Dr Guofeng Cheng, co-founder and CEO of AusperBio, said the first patient dosing of AHB-171 represents an important milestone for the company and demonstrates its ability to translate proprietary platform technologies into clinical-stage drug candidates.

He said AHB-171 broadens AusperBio’s HBV pipeline beyond AHB-137 and supports its strategy of developing differentiated oligonucleotide therapies with complementary mechanisms of action.

Cheng added that the company believes this approach could contribute to efforts to achieve a functional cure for CHB.

He also thanked the patients, investigators and study teams involved in advancing the programme into clinical development.

Au-HALO technology supports targeted delivery

Dr Chris Yang, co-founder and chief scientific officer of AusperBio, said AHB-171 combines the company’s siRNA discovery capabilities with its Au-HALO liver-targeting delivery technology.

The candidate is designed to deliver potent and sustained suppression of viral gene expression, which could make it suitable for combination treatment strategies aimed at achieving a functional cure for CHB.

According to Yang, the clinical study will provide an opportunity to assess AHB-171’s safety and clinical profile in people with CHB while also evaluating the performance of the Au-HALO delivery and siRNA technology platform.

AusperBio expects the resulting clinical data to inform the continued development of AHB-171 and support further advancement of its HBV pipeline.

The company also plans to use the findings to assess the wider potential of its targeted delivery technologies in developing oligonucleotide-based therapies.