New Drug Approvals 2013 - Pt. XXX - Umeclidinium bromide and Vilanterol (Anoro Ellipta™)






 ATC code: R03AL03
Wikipedia: Umeclidinium bromide (and vilanterol)

ChEMBL: CHEMBL1187833 (and CHEMBL1198857)

On December 18, 2013, the FDA approved Anoro Ellipta for the once-daily, long-term maintenance treatment of airflow obstruction in patients with obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Anoro is a combination of umeclidinium (62.5 mcg - more details below) and vilanterol inhalation powder (25 mcg - already approved in a different formulation). Ellipta is the single inhaler device:



The majority of COPD cases are due to cigarette smoking and this lung disease is a leading cause of death in the United States. Patients affected by COPD experience breathing difficulties worsening with the time as well as chronic cough and chest tightness.


Umeclidinium
Umeclidinium (also known as umeclidinium bromide, GSK573719A and GSK573719) is a small molecule with a molecular weight of 428.6 Da and AlogP of 3.34, 8 rotatable bounds and no Lipinski's rule of five violation.

Molecular formula: C29H34NO2
Canonical SMILES: OC(c1ccccc1)(c2ccccc2)C34CC[N+](CCOCc5ccccc5)(CC3)CC4
Standard InChI: InChI=1S/C29H34NO2/c31-29(26-12-6-2-7-13-26,27-14-8-3-9-15-27)28-16-19-30(20-17-28,21-18-28)22-23-32-24-25-10-4-1-5-11-25/h1-15,31H,16-24H2/q+1
Alternate form of the molecule in ChEMBL: CHEMBL523299

Mechanism of action



Anoro Ellipta relaxes the muscles located around the airways of the lung to increase the airflow in patients. This mechanism of action is mediated via umeclidinium, anticholinergic stopping muscle tightening in combination with vilanterol, a long-acting beta2-adrenergic agonist (LABA).

Safety information

The phase III trials for Anoro Ellipta included seven clinical studies, involving around 6,000 patients with COPD. The mainly reported side-effect were narrowing and obstruction of the respiratory airway (paradoxical bronchospasm), cardiovascular effects, increased pressure in the eyes (acute narrow-angle glaucoma), and worsening of urinary retention.

Note that Anoro Ellipta is not indicated for the treatment of asthma and displays a boxed warning for this indication.

Anoro Ellipta is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, Research Triangle Park, N.C.