Debio 0932, A New Oral Hsp90 Inhibitor, Alleviates Psoriasis in a Xenograft Transplantation Model

Abstract

Debio 0932 is a novel oral heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitor developed for anti-cancer therapy. Surprising-ly, during the first clinical trial, one psoriasis patient experienced complete remission of his skin manifestation. However, a possible therapeutic utility of Hsp90 in psoriasis has not previously been reported. The objective of the present study was to explore the ability of Debio 0932 to alleviate psoriasis in a preclinical model. A psoriasis xenograft transplantation model was employed where skin from 5 psoriasis patients was transplanted onto immunodeficient mice (8 xenografts per donor). Debio 0932 was administered perorally daily for 3 weeks and resulted in significant clinical alleviation of psoriasis by day 11 and reduced epidermal thickness evaluated post-treatment. Alleviation of psoriasis in the psoriasis xenograft transplantation model, which may be due to Hsp90’s involvement in signalling pathways that are up-regulated in psoriasis, substantiates a potential role of Debio 0932 in psoriasis treatment.