Trofinetide for the treatment of Rett syndrome: a randomized phase 3 study

Rett syndrome is a rare, genetic neurodevelopmental disorder. Trofinetide is a synthetic analog of glycine–proline–glutamate, the N-terminal tripeptide of the insulin-like growth factor 1 protein, and has demonstrated clinical benefit in phase 2 studies in Rett syndrome. In this phase 3 study (https://clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT04181723), females with Rett syndrome received twice-daily oral trofinetide (n = 93) or placebo (n = 94) for 12 weeks. For the coprimary efficacy endpoints, least squares mean (LSM) change from baseline to week 12 in the Rett Syndrome Behaviour Questionnaire for trofinetide versus placebo was −4.9 versus −1.7 (P = 0.0175; Cohen’s d effect size, 0.37), and LSM Clinical Global Impression–Improvement at week 12 was 3.5 versus 3.8 (P = 0.0030; effect size, 0.47). For the key secondary efficacy endpoint, LSM change from baseline to week 12 in the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile Infant–Toddler Checklist Social Composite score was −0.1 versus −1.1 (P = 0.0064; effect size, 0.43). Common treatment-emergent adverse events included diarrhea (80.6% for trofinetide versus 19.1% for placebo), which was mostly mild to moderate in severity. Significant improvement for trofinetide compared with placebo was observed for the coprimary efficacy endpoints, suggesting that trofinetide provides benefit in treating the core symptoms of Rett syndrome.