The consortium formed by the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), aptaTargets, the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) and the University of Valladolid has received €4 million in funding from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the State Research Agency (AEI).

The grant will support the NexTOLL project, which aims to launch a multicentre Phase 2b clinical trial to confirm the neuroprotective effect of ApTOLL in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). The clinical trial is scheduled to start in 2024.

These funds come from a highly competitive call for proposals from the State Programme for the Promotion of Scientific and Technical Research and its Transfer 2022 (formerly known as Retos Colaboración) which provides funding for public-private collaboration projects to catalyse innovation and business leadership in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

A new drug to reduce mortality and long-term stroke disability

Notably, the results of the research conducted with ApTOLL to date are very encouraging. ApTOLL is the first neuroprotective drug to obtain positive results in clinical trials with patients, which were presented at the International Stroke Conference in February 2023 and published in the prestigious scientific journal JAMA Neurology.

ApTOLL is a first-in-class neuroprotective drug that acts on the Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) with high specificity, blocking the inflammatory response that occurs after an ischemic stroke. The results obtained so far demonstrate ApTOLL’s neuroprotective effect after a stroke occurs, protecting the brain tissue at risk and show positive efficacy endpoints in acute ischemic stroke trials, decreasing significantly mortality and long-term functional disability.

The funding received from the AEI is key to bringing ApTOLL to the market, which could provide an important therapeutic option for stroke patients who have a significant unmet medical need.