Brussels, Belgium – 28 April 2021, 7:00 CEST – UCB announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) date for UCB’s Biologics License Application (BLA) for bimekizumab for the treatment of adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis at October 15, 2021. 

Bimekizumab for the treatment of adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis is currently under review by the U.S. FDA for the BLA and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA), respectively. Regulatory reviews are also underway in Japan, Australia and Canada.

Subject to respective approvals, UCB will bring bimekizumab to patients starting in the second half of 2021. 

About Bimekizumab - Bimekizumab is an investigational humanized monoclonal IgG1 antibody that selectively inhibits both IL-17A and IL-17F, two key cytokines driving inflammatory processes.[1] IL-17F has overlapping biology with IL-17A and drives inflammation independently to IL-17A.^{[2],[3],[4],[5],[6]} Selective inhibition of IL-17F in addition to IL-17A suppresses inflammation to a greater extent than IL-17A inhibition alone.^[5],[6] The safety and efficacy of bimekizumab are being evaluated across multiple disease states as part of a robust clinical program. The safety and efficacy of bimekizumab have not been established and it is not approved by any regulatory authority worldwide. Bimekizumab is currently also being evaluated in Phase 3 trials for potential indications in psoriatic arthritis,^[7],[8] ankylosing spondylitis, ^[9] non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis^[10] and hidradenitis suppurativa. ^[11],[12] 

About Psoriasis - Psoriasis is a common, chronic inflammatory disease with primary involvement of the skin. This skin condition affects men and women of all ages and ethnicities.^[13] 
Psoriasis signs and symptoms can vary but may include red patches of skin covered with silvery scales; dry, cracked skin that may bleed; and thickened, pitted or ridged nails.^[14] 

Psoriasis affects nearly three percent of the population, or about 125 million people worldwide.^[15],[16] Unmet needs remain in the treatment of psoriasis. A population-based survey identified that approximately 30 percent of psoriasis patients reported that their primary goals of therapy, including keeping symptoms under control, reducing itching and decreasing flaking, were not met with their current treatment.^[17] Psoriasis has a considerable psychological and quality of life impact, potentially affecting work, recreation, relationships, sexual functioning, family and social life.^[18]

About UCB - UCB, Brussels, Belgium (www.ucb.com) is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative medicines and solutions to transform the lives of people living with severe diseases of the immune system or of the central nervous system. With more than 7 600 people in approximately 40 countries, the company generated revenue of € 5.3 billion in 2020. UCB is listed on Euronext Brussels (symbol: UCB). Follow us on Twitter: @UCB_news.

Forward looking statements UCB 
This press release contains forward-looking statements including, without limitation, statements containing the words “believes”, “anticipates”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “seeks”, “estimates”, “may”, “will”, “continue” and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are based on current plans, estimates and beliefs of management. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including estimates of revenues, operating margins, capital expenditures, cash, other financial information, expected legal, arbitration, political, regulatory or clinical results or practices and other such estimates and results. By their nature, such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions which might cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of UCB, or industry results, to differ materially from those that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Important factors that could result in such differences include: the global spread and impact of COVID-19, changes in general economic, business and competitive conditions, the inability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals or to obtain them on acceptable terms or within expected timing, costs associated with research and development, changes in the prospects for products in the pipeline or under development by UCB, effects of future judicial decisions or governmental investigations, safety, quality, data integrity or manufacturing issues; potential or actual data security and data privacy breaches, or disruptions of our information technology systems, product liability claims, challenges to patent protection for products or product candidates, competition from other products including biosimilars, changes in laws or regulations, exchange rate fluctuations, changes or uncertainties in tax laws or the administration of such laws, and hiring and retention of its employees. There is no guarantee that new product candidates will be discovered or identified in the pipeline, or that new indications for existing products will be developed and approved. Movement from concept to commercial product is uncertain; preclinical results do not guarantee safety and efficacy of product candidates in humans. So far, the complexity of the human body cannot be reproduced in computer models, cell culture systems or animal models. The length of the timing to complete clinical trials and to get regulatory approval for product marketing has varied in the past and UCB expects similar unpredictability going forward. Products or potential products which are the subject of partnerships, joint ventures or licensing collaborations may be subject to disputes between the partners or may prove to be not as safe, effective or commercially successful as UCB may have believed at the start of such partnership. UCB’ efforts to acquire other products or companies and to integrate the operations of such acquired companies may not be as successful as UCB may have believed at the moment of acquisition. Also, UCB or others could discover safety, side effects or manufacturing problems with its products and/or devices after they are marketed. The discovery of significant problems with a product similar to one of UCB’s products that implicate an entire class of products may have a material adverse effect on sales of the entire class of affected products. Moreover, sales may be impacted by international and domestic trends toward managed care and health care cost containment, including pricing pressure, political and public scrutiny, customer and prescriber patterns or practices, and the reimbursement policies imposed by third-party payers as well as legislation affecting biopharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement activities and outcomes. Finally, a breakdown, cyberattack or information security breach could compromise the confidentiality, integrity and availability of UCB’s data and systems.  

Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on any of such forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee that the investigational or approved products described in this press release will be submitted or approved for sale or for any additional indications or labelling in any market, or at any particular time, nor can there be any guarantee that such products will be or will continue to be commercially successful in the future. 

UCB is providing this information, including forward-looking statements, only as of the date of this press release and expressly disclaims any duty to update any information contained in this press release, either to confirm the actual results or to report or reflect any change in its forward-looking statements with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, unless such statement is required pursuant to applicable laws and regulations.
 
Additionally, information contained in this document shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any offer, solicitation or sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.  

For further information, UCB: 

Corporate Communications
Laurent Schots, 
Media Relations, UCB
T+32.2.559.92.64,
laurent.schots@ucb.com

Investor Relations
Antje Witte,
Investor Relations, UCB
T +32.2.559.94.14,
antje.witte@ucb.com    


References
[1] Glatt S, Helmer E, Haier B, et al. First-in-human randomized study of bimekizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody and selective dual inhibitor of IL-17A and IL-17F, in mild psoriasis. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2017;83(5):991-1001.
[2] Yang XO, Chang SH, Park H, et al. Regulation of inflammatory responses by IL-17F. J Exp Med. 2008;205(5):1063–1075.
[3] Hymowitz SG, Filvaroff EH, Yin JP, et al. IL-17s adopt a cystine knot fold: structure and activity of a novel cytokine, IL-17F, and implications for receptor binding. EMBO J. 2001;20(19):5332–5341.
[4] van Baarsen LG, Lebre MC, van der Coelen D, et al. Heterogeneous expression pattern of interleukin 17A (IL-17A), IL-17F and their receptors in synovium of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and osteoarthritis: possible explanation for nonresponse to anti-IL-17 therapy? Arthritis Res Ther. 2014;16(4):426.
[5] Maroof A, Okoye R, Smallie T, et al. Bimekizumab dual inhibition of IL-17A and IL-17F provides evidence of IL-17F contribution to chronic inflammation in disease-relevant cells. Ann Rheum Dis. 2017;76(2):213.
[6] Glatt S, Baeten D, Baker T, et al. Dual IL-17A and IL-17F neutralisation by bimekizumab in psoriatic arthritis: evidence from preclinical experiments and a randomised placebo-controlled clinical trial that IL-17F contributes to human chronic tissue inflammation. Ann Rheum Dis. 2018;77(4):523-532.
[7] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in the treatment of subjects with active psoriatic arthritis (BE COMPLETE). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT3896581. Last accessed: April 2021.
[8] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to test the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in the treatment of subjects with active psoriatic arthritis (BE OPTIMAL). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03895203. Last accessed: April 2021.
[9] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in subjects with active ankylosing spondylitis (BE MOBILE 2). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03928743. Last accessed: April 2021.
[10] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in subjects with active nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis (BE MOBILE 1). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03928704. Last accessed: April 2021.
[11] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in study participants with moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa (BE HEARD I). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04242446. Last accessed: April 2021.
[12] ClinicalTrials.gov. A study to test the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in study participants with moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa (BE HEARD II). Available at: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04242498. Last accessed: April 2021.
[13] National Psoriasis Foundation. About Psoriasis. Available at: https://www.psoriasis.org/about-psoriasis/. Last accessed: March 2021.
[14] International Federation of Psoriasis Associations. Available at: www.ifpa-pso.com/our-cause//. Last accessed: March 2021.
[15] Griffiths C, van der Walt J, et al. The global state of psoriasis disease epidemiology: a workshop report. Br J Dermatol. 2017;177(1):e4– e7.
[16] World Health Organization. Global report on psoriasis, 2016. Available at: http://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/204417. Last accessed: March 2021.
[17] Lebwohl MG, Kavanaugh A, Armstrong AW et al. US Perspectives in the Management of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis: Patient and Physician Results from the Population-Based Multinational Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (MAPP) Survey. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2016;17(1):87-97.
[18] Moon HS, Mizara A, McBride SR. Psoriasis and psycho-dermatology. Dermatol Ther (Heidelb). 2013;3(2):117-130.