Everest Medicines (HKEX 1952.HK) and Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) announced today that the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) approved Kezar's investigational new drug (IND) application for initiation of the Phase 2b PALIZADE trial in China of zetomipzomib in patients with lupus nephritis (LN). Zetomipzomib is a novel, first-in-class, selective immunoproteasome inhibitor with broad therapeutic potential across multiple autoimmune diseases.
Everest will join Kezar and enroll patients in China as part of the ongoing PALIZADE trial, a global, placebo-controlled Phase 2b clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of two dose levels of zetomipzomib or placebo in patients with active LN. In September 2023, Everest obtained exclusive rights to develop and commercialize zetomipzomib in Greater China, South Korea and Southeast Asia. LN is the most common secondary immune-mediated glomerular disease, which may gradually lead to kidney failure. There are an estimated 400,000-600,000 LN patients in China.