Evommune announced on June 30 that it will end the development of its lead asset, EVO756, in chronic spontaneous urticaria after a Phase 2b study showed no significant benefit on disease activity.
The company had been testing the oral MRGPRX2 blocker EVO756 among 160 patients with moderate-to-severe illness who did not respond to antihistamines. In a statement released Monday, Evommune said all three tested doses failed to meet the study’s goal of reducing disease activity at 12 weeks. The company did not provide specific data from the trial.
As a result of these findings, Evommune will stop developing EVO756 for this indication. Chief Executive Officer Luis Peña said the outcome was “disappointing,” but added that the company still believes in EVO756’s mechanism as a potential therapeutic option to reduce inflammation and provide rapid relief of symptoms. Following the announcement, Evommune shares closed down just over 40% on Monday.
Despite this setback, Evommune plans to continue studying EVO756 in atopic dermatitis and migraine. Oppenheimer analysts told investors that with this mid-stage failure, Evommune’s therapeutic protein EVO301 “becomes the centerpiece of EVMN story.” According to a February readout from a Phase 2a atopic dermatitis trial, EVO301—an anti-IL-18 treatment—showed a 33% placebo-adjusted reduction in eczema severity at 12 weeks. Oppenheimer assigned only a five percent probability of success to EVO756 in atopic dermatitis and said they expect investors to write off those programs.
William Blair analysts also commented that while they see EVO301 as now being Evommune’s major value driver with blockbuster potential, results from an upcoming Phase IIb trial are not expected until late 2028. In addition to atopic dermatitis, EVO301 is also being developed for ulcerative colitis and is currently in Phase 1 trials.
