Safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of a novel farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonist-TQA3526 in healthy Chinese volunteers: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation, food effect phase I study

Background: TQA3526 is a novel farnesoid X receptor agonist developed to treat non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) or primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). This study aimed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) of TQA3526 in healthy Chinese patients.Methods: Healthy subjects aged 18-55 years were enrolled in this double-blinded, first-in-human, placebo-controlled single ascending dose (1, 2, 5, and 10 mg) comprising food effect investigation (10 mg) and multiple dose study (2 mg and 0.2 + 0.5 + 1 mg). Safety was assessed on the basis of adverse events. The TQA3526 concentrations were analysed in the PK study. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), fibroblast growth factor-19 (FGF19), bile acid precursor C4 (7 alpha-hydroxy-cholest-4-ene-3-one), cholesterol, and bile acid were selected for PD analysis.Results: TQA3526 was well tolerated, and the primary adverse drug reaction was pruritus, as expected. The exposure to TQA3526 increased in a dose-dependent manner after a single dose of 1-10 mg. The exposure was higher after food intake. A steady state was reached around 5 days, and obvious plasma accumulation of TQA3526 was observed in the multiple dose study. TQA3526 increased circulating FGF-19 and decreased C4 levels in a dose-dependent manner. ALP increased only mildly in the 2 mg multiple dose cohort.Conclusions: TQA3526 (<10 mg/day) was safe and tolerable in healthy Chinese subjects. The safety profile and PK/PD characteristics of TQA3526 support further evaluation of patients with NASH or PBC. This study was registered at https://www.chictr.org.cn/ under the identifier ChiCTR1800019570.