Karolinska Development AB announced that its portfolio company Modus Therapeutics has included the first patient in the company's phase 1 clinical study SEVUSMART, which aims to evaluate the drug candidate sevuparin in pediatric patients with severe malaria. Modus Therapeutics is developing sevuparin for the treatment of sepsis/septic shock and other systemic inflammatory diseases, such as severe malaria. In the phase 1 clinical trial, sevuparin's safety profile and tolerability at escalating doses will be evaluated.

The objective is to include up to 20 pediatric patients, between the ages of 3 months and 12 years, with severe malaria. The study is being conducted at Kilifi County Hospital in Kenya and aims to identify the appropriate dose in combination with standard treatment ahead of future clinical studies. The study is being carried out in collaboration with a research team led by Professor Kathryn Maitland at Imperial College London, UK.

The project is funded by a research grant from Wellcome.