Retension Pharmaceuticals Forms Scientific Advisory Board to Support RTN-001 Phase 2b Hypertension Development
Retension Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines for hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases, has announced the formation of a Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) to provide strategic, scientific and clinical guidance as the company advances its lead investigational therapy, RTN-001, through clinical development.
The newly established advisory board brings together internationally recognized physicians and clinical investigators with expertise spanning hypertension, nephrology, cardiology, cardiorenal disease and cardiovascular clinical research. The advisors are expected to provide guidance on therapeutic strategy, clinical trial design and execution, disease management and the broader clinical potential of RTN-001 as Retension continues its ongoing Phase 2b clinical trial in patients with hypertension.
The formation of the SAB comes at an important stage in the company’s development program as Retension works toward generating clinical data for RTN-001 and evaluating its potential role in patients whose blood pressure remains inadequately controlled despite existing treatment approaches.
Hypertension remains one of the most significant cardiovascular risk factors worldwide and is associated with serious complications involving multiple organs, including the heart and kidneys. Although numerous antihypertensive medicines are available, a substantial number of patients continue to have blood pressure levels above recommended targets. Retension is developing RTN-001 with the goal of addressing this continuing unmet medical need.
Scientific Advisory Board Brings Broad Hypertension Expertise
The inaugural Retension Scientific Advisory Board consists of five physicians and investigators with extensive experience in hypertension, cardiovascular medicine, nephrology, clinical pharmacology and clinical research.
The members are:
- Omar Al Dhaybi, M.D., MSc, FASN, Director of the American Heart Association Comprehensive Hypertension Center at Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital and Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
- James L. Januzzi, M.D., Adolph Hutter Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, a member of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cardiology Division, and Chief Scientific Officer and C. Michael Gibson Chair at the Baim Institute for Clinical Research.
- Luke J. Laffin, M.D., a member of the Preventive Cardiology & Rehabilitation Section at Cleveland Clinic, Medical Director of the Cleveland Clinic Coordinating Center for Clinical Research (C5Research), and Associate Professor of Medicine at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Laffin also serves as Chair of the Steering Committee for Retension’s Phase 2b trial.
- Ian Wilkinson, M.D., Professor of Therapeutics at the University of Cambridge, Director of the Cambridge Clinical Trials Unit and Office of Translational Research, President of the British and Irish Hypertension Society, and Honorary Consultant Physician in Clinical Pharmacology and General Medicine at Cambridge University Hospitals.
- Randall M. Zusman, M.D., Director of the Division of Hypertension at Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Together, the advisors bring experience in hypertension diagnosis and management, cardiovascular risk reduction, cardiorenal disease, clinical pharmacology and the design and execution of clinical trials.
Their combined expertise is expected to help Retension evaluate the clinical development strategy for RTN-001 while the company progresses through its Phase 2b program.
Supporting Development of RTN-001
RTN-001 is currently being evaluated in an ongoing Phase 2b clinical trial in patients with hypertension. The program represents a key component of Retension’s strategy to develop new treatment options for patients who may not achieve adequate blood pressure control with currently available therapies.
While existing antihypertensive medications have improved the management of hypertension, treatment remains challenging for many patients. Some individuals require multiple medications to reach blood pressure targets, while others continue to experience uncontrolled hypertension despite treatment.
Persistent elevations in blood pressure can increase the risk of cardiovascular complications and contribute to damage involving organs such as the heart and kidneys. This makes the development of new approaches to blood pressure control an important area of pharmaceutical research.
Retension believes the expertise of its new Scientific Advisory Board will be particularly valuable as the company evaluates RTN-001 in clinical development and considers its potential role within the broader hypertension treatment landscape.
The board’s involvement is expected to include scientific and strategic input as well as guidance related to clinical trial design, execution and interpretation of emerging data.
Focus on Cardiovascular and Cardiorenal Disease
The expertise represented on the SAB reflects the increasingly interconnected nature of hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
High blood pressure is closely associated with cardiovascular complications and can contribute to structural and functional changes in the heart and vascular system. It is also closely linked with kidney disease, creating a cycle in which cardiovascular and renal dysfunction can influence each other.
This cardiorenal relationship is particularly important when considering treatment strategies for patients with difficult-to-control hypertension. A therapy capable of producing clinically meaningful reductions in blood pressure could potentially have broader implications for cardiovascular risk management, although the clinical benefits of RTN-001 will need to be established through clinical development.
The presence of specialists in hypertension, cardiology, nephrology and clinical pharmacology on Retension’s advisory board gives the company access to expertise across these interconnected areas.
Leadership Highlights Clinical Rigor
Eric Keller, Chief Executive Officer of Retension Pharmaceuticals, said the formation of the Scientific Advisory Board reflects the strength of the clinical and scientific leadership supporting the RTN-001 program.
“The formation of this Scientific Advisory Board reflects both the caliber of clinical and scientific leadership we have been able to bring to the RTN-001 program,” Keller said.
He noted that the advisors have contributed to the modern understanding and management of hypertension and its effects on end-organ health, particularly the heart and kidneys.
According to Keller, their guidance will be important as Retension advances RTN-001 through its ongoing Phase 2b trial.
The involvement of experienced hypertension and cardiovascular investigators could provide the company with additional perspectives on patient selection, trial conduct, clinical endpoints and interpretation of results.
Steering Committee Leadership for Phase 2b Trial
Luke J. Laffin has a particularly important role in the RTN-001 clinical program, serving as Chair of the Steering Committee for Retension’s Phase 2b trial.
In addition to his clinical and academic roles at Cleveland Clinic, Laffin has extensive experience in preventive cardiology and clinical research. His involvement in the trial’s Steering Committee is intended to provide independent clinical and scientific leadership as the Phase 2b study progresses.
The Steering Committee role complements his membership on the newly established Scientific Advisory Board, giving Retension additional expertise as it moves toward topline clinical data.
The company expects the advisory board and Steering Committee to contribute to maintaining scientific rigor throughout the development program.
Addressing Unmet Needs in Hypertension
Alison D. Schecter, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Retension Pharmaceuticals, emphasized the importance of bringing together experienced investigators as the company advances its Phase 2b program.
“This board’s depth gives us the clinical rigor to pursue a therapy built for patients whose current treatments fail to achieve clinically meaningful reductions in blood pressure,” Schecter said.
She added that the expertise represented on the board will be particularly valuable as Retension moves toward topline data from the Phase 2b trial.
Schecter also highlighted the role of Laffin as Steering Committee Chair, noting that his leadership adds another layer of clinical expertise to the study.
According to Schecter, the board’s input will help strengthen both execution of the Phase 2b trial and the company’s broader assessment of RTN-001’s potential impact beyond the current study.
Preparing for Phase 2b Data
The formation of the Scientific Advisory Board provides Retension with additional clinical and scientific resources as it approaches an important stage in RTN-001 development.
Phase 2 studies are designed to generate information about the efficacy, safety and appropriate dosing of investigational therapies and can provide critical evidence to guide subsequent development decisions. For a hypertension program, clinical measures of blood pressure reduction and other relevant outcomes will be central to evaluating whether an investigational therapy has the potential to progress.
As the Phase 2b trial advances, Retension expects its Scientific Advisory Board to help the company evaluate emerging evidence and consider the implications for future development.
The advisors’ experience across clinical medicine, hypertension research and trial design may also help inform how future studies are structured should the Phase 2b results support continued development.
Retension Pharmaceuticals’ newly formed Scientific Advisory Board represents an important addition to the company’s clinical development infrastructure as it advances RTN-001 in hypertension.
The board combines expertise from leading institutions and organizations in the United States and United Kingdom, bringing together specialists in hypertension, cardiology, nephrology, clinical pharmacology and cardiovascular clinical research.
With the Phase 2b clinical trial underway, Retension is focused on evaluating RTN-001 in patients with hypertension and generating clinical evidence to determine its potential as a future treatment option.
The company believes the addition of experienced scientific and clinical advisors will strengthen its ability to execute the current trial, interpret emerging data and plan subsequent stages of development.
As Retension works toward topline Phase 2b results, the company will continue to evaluate RTN-001’s potential for patients whose blood pressure remains inadequately controlled despite available treatment options. The establishment of the Scientific Advisory Board underscores Retension’s commitment to applying rigorous clinical and scientific expertise to the development of new therapies for hypertension and related cardiovascular diseases.
About Retension Pharmaceuticals
Retension Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing medicines for the treatment of hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases. The company’s lead clinical candidate, RTN-001, is in development for patients with uncontrolled and resistant hypertension.
About RTN-001
Retension Pharmaceuticals is developing RTN-001, a cardiovascular-targeted, next-generation PDE5 inhibitor designed to directly enhance nitric oxide signaling in central arteries not adequately reached by first-generation PDE5 inhibitors, thereby addressing a core driver of hypertension. RTN-001 has been studied in multiple clinical trials totaling 265 subjects. RTN-001 has a demonstrated efficacy and safety profile in patients and healthy volunteers with clinically meaningful reductions in blood pressure. A Phase 2b trial of RTN-001 in hypertension is ongoing. RTN-001 is being developed under an exclusive world-wide license from Sanofi S.A.