A new drug designed to treat systemic  lupus erythematosus (SLE) could soon enter the next round of clinical testing after a phase IIb trial achieved promising results.

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease in which a person’s antibodies – which are supposed to attack invading pathogens – destroy their own cells and tissues, leading to inflammation of the skin, blood vessels and organs.

The new drug is designed to modulate the activity of B cells, which are a form of immune cell that produces antibodies.

Researchers at biopharmaceutical company UCB in Belgium recruited 227 patients, all of whom had moderate to severely active lupus affecting more than one of their organs.

Participants were split into two groups, one of which was given epratuzumab for 12 weeks while the other received a placebo (dummy drug).

After 12 weeks of treatment, epratuzumab was associated with a 24.9 per cent improvement in disease activity compared with the placebo.

Cynthia Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of biopharmaceutical company Immunomedics, commented: “We are delighted that this randomised, placebo-controlled study conducted by UCB demonstrates the activity of epratuzumab in SLE, which has proven to be difficult to treat with currently available drugs

Roch Doliveux, chief executive officer of UCB, added: “These results may provide new hope for the hundreds of thousands of people around the world living with SLE as no new treatment has been approved for this life-altering disease for over five decades.”