Background-X-linked hypophosphatemia in children is characterized by elevated serum FGF23, hypophosphatemia, rickets, lower extremity bowing, and growth impairment. We compared the efficacy and safety of continuing conventional therapy, consisting of oral phosphate and active vitamin D, versus switching to burosumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody against FGF23, in pediatric X-linked hypophosphatemia.Methods-In this randomised, active-controlled, open-label, phase 3 trial at 16 clinical sites, we enrolled children with X-linked hypophosphataemia aged 1-12 years. Key eligibility criteria were a total Thacher rickets severity score of at least 2•0, fasting serum phosphorus lower than 0•97 mmol/L (3•0 mg/dL), confirmed PHEX (phosphate-regulating endopeptidase homolog, X-linked) mutation or variant of unknown significance in the patient or a family member with appropriate Xlinked dominant inheritance, and receipt of conventional therapy for at least 6 consecutive months for children younger than 3 years or at least 12 consecutive months for children older than 3 years. Eligible patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either subcutaneous burosumab starting at 0•8 mg/kg every 2 weeks (burosumab group) or conventional therapy prescribed by investigators (conventional therapy group). Both interventions lasted 64 weeks. The primary endpoint was change in rickets severity at week 40, assessed by the Radiographic Global Impression of Change global score. All patients who received at least one dose of treatment were included in the primary and safety analyses. The trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02915705.

In X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH), inherited loss-of-function mutations in the PHEX gene cause excess circulating levels of fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23), leading to lifelong renal phosphate wasting and hypophosphatemia. Adults with XLH present with chronic musculoskeletal pain and stiffness, short stature, lower limb deformities, fractures, and pseudofractures due to osteomalacia, accelerated osteoarthritis, dental abscesses, and enthesopathy. Burosumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody, binds and inhibits FGF23 to correct hypophosphatemia. This report summarizes results from a double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial of burosumab in symptomatic adults with XLH. Participants with hypophosphatemia and pain were assigned 1:1 to burosumab 1 mg/kg (n ¼ 68) or placebo (n ¼ 66) subcutaneously every 4 weeks (Q4W) and were comparable at baseline. Across midpoints of dosing intervals, 94.1% of burosumab-treated participants attained mean serum phosphate concentration above the lower limit of normal compared with 7.6% of those receiving placebo (p < 0.001). Burosumab significantly reduced the Western Ontario and the McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) stiffness subscale compared with placebo (least squares [LS] mean AE standard error [SE] difference, -8.1 AE 3.24; p ¼ 0.012). Reductions in WOMAC physical function subscale (-4.9 AE 2.48; p ¼ 0.048) and Brief Pain Inventory worst pain (-0.5 AE 0.28; p ¼ 0.092) did not achieve statistical significance after Hochberg multiplicity adjustment. At week 24, 43.1% (burosumab) and 7.7% (placebo) of baseline active fractures were fully healed; the odds of healed fracture in the burosumab group was 16.8-fold greater than that in the placebo group (p < 0.001). Biochemical markers of bone formation and resorption increased significantly from baseline with burosumab treatment compared 1383with placebo. The safety profile of burosumab was similar to placebo. There were no treatment-related serious adverse events or meaningful changes from baseline in serum or urine calcium, intact parathyroid hormone, or nephrocalcinosis. These data support the conclusion that burosumab is a novel therapeutic addressing an important medical need in adults with XLH.

Fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23) is a novel circulating peptide that regulates phosphorus (Pi) and vitamin D metabolism, but the mechanisms by which circulating FGF-23 itself is regulated are unknown. To determine whether the serum FGF-23 concentration is regulated by dietary intake of Pi, we fed wild-type (WT), Npt2a gene-ablated (Npt2a(-/-)), and Hyp mice diets containing varying Pi contents (0.02-1.65%). In WT mice, increases in dietary Pi intake from 0.02-1.65% induced a 7-fold increase in serum FGF-23 and a 3-fold increase in serum Pi concentrations. Across the range of dietary Pi, serum FGF-23 concentrations varied directly with serum Pi concentrations (r(2) = 0.72; P < 0.001). In Npt2a(-/-) mice, serum FGF-23 concentrations were significantly lower than in WT mice, and these differences could be accounted for by the lower serum Pi levels in Npt2a(-/-) mice. The serum concentrations of FGF-23 in Hyp mice were 5- to 25-fold higher than values in WT mice, and the values varied with dietary Pi intake. Fgf-23 mRNA abundance in calvaria was significantly higher in Hyp mice than in WT mice on the 1% Pi diet; in both groups of mice, fgf-23 mRNA abundance in calvarial bone was suppressed by 85% on the low (0.02%) Pi diet. In WT mice fed the low (0.02%) Pi diet, renal mitochondrial 1alpha-hydroxylase activity and renal 1alpha-hydroxylase (P450c1alpha) mRNA abundance were significantly higher than in mice fed the higher Pi diets and varied inversely with serum FGF-23 concentrations (r(2) = 0.86 and r(2) = 0.64; P < 0.001, respectively). The present data demonstrate that dietary Pi regulates the serum FGF-23 concentration in mice, and such regulation is independent of phex function. The data suggest that genotype-dependent and dietary Pi-induced changes in the serum FGF-23 concentration reflect changes in fgf-23 gene expression in bone.

August 15, 2007; doi:10.1152/ajprenal.00463.2006) is critical to the pathogenesis of a distinct group of renal phosphate wasting disorders: tumor-induced osteomalacia, X-linked hypophosphatemia, and autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive hypophosphatemic rickets. Excess circulating FGF-23 is responsible for their major phenotypic features which include hypophosphatemia due to renal phosphate wasting and inappropriately low serum 1,25(OH) 2D concentrations. To characterize the effects of FGF-23 on renal sodium-phosphate (Na/P i) cotransport and vitamin D metabolism, we administered FGF-23(R176Q) to normal mice. A single injection (0.33 g/g body wt) induced significant hypophosphatemia, 20 and 29% decreases (P Ͻ 0.001) in brush-border membrane (BBM) Na/P i cotransport at 5 and 17 h after injection, respectively, and comparable decreases in the abundance of type IIa Na/P i cotransporter protein in BBM. Multiple injections (6, 12, and 24 g/day for 4 days) induced dose-dependent decreases (38, 63, and 75%, respectively) in renal abundance of 1␣-hydroxylase mRNA (P Ͻ 0.05). To determine whether FGF-23(R176Q) exerts a direct action on 1␣-hydroxylase gene expression, we examined its effects in cultured human (HKC-8) and mouse (MCT) renal proximal tubule cells. FGF-23(R176Q) (1 to 10 ng/ml) induced a dose-dependent decrease in 1␣-hydroxylase mRNA with a maximum suppression of 37% (P Ͻ 0.05). Suppression was detectable after 6 h of exposure and maximal after 21 h. In MCT cells, FGF-23(R176Q) suppressed 1␣-hydroxylase mRNA and activated the ERK1/2 signaling pathway. The MAPK inhibitor PD98059 effectively abolished FGF-23-induced suppression of 1␣-hydroxylase mRNA by blocking signal transduction via ERK1/2. These novel findings provide evidence that FGF-23 directly regulates renal 1␣-hydroxylase gene expression via activation of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway. bone and mineral homeostasis; hypophosphatemic syndromes FIBROBLAST GROWTH FACTOR-23 (FGF-23), a bone-derived circulating peptide, is an important regulator of phosphorus and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25(OH) 2 D] metabolism and is required for maintenance of normal bone and mineral homeostasis. An excess of FGF-23 has been linked to the pathogenesis of tumor-induced osteomalacia, X-linked hypophosphatemia, and autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive hypophosphatemic rickets (4,12,21,29,33). These hypophosphatemic syndromes share common clinical and laboratory features which include rickets and osteomalacia, hypophosphatemia due to renal phosphate (P i ) wasting, inappropriately low serum 1,25(OH) 2 D concentrations, and greatly increased serum FGF-23 concentrations. That excess circulating FGF-23 contributes to the pathogenesis of these disorders is supported by observations that administration of recombinant FGF-23 or its overexpression in animals induces hypophosphatemia and inhibition of sodium (Na)-dependent P i (Na/P i ) cotransport in renal brush-border membrane (BBM) vesicles (1,19,29). FGF-23 suppresses the renal production of 1,25(OH) 2 D by suppressin...

Burosumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody to FGF23, is the only approved treatment for X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH), a rare genetic disorder characterized by renal phosphate wasting and substantial cumulative musculoskeletal morbidity. During an initial 24-week randomized, controlled trial, 134 adults with XLH received burosumab 1 mg/kg (n = 68) or placebo (n = 66) every 4 weeks. After 24 weeks, all subjects received open-label burosumab until week 48. This report describes the efficacy and safety of burosumab during the open-label treatment period. From weeks 24-48, serum phosphorus concentrations remained normal in 83.8% of participants who received burosumab throughout and were normalized in 89.4% who received burosumab after placebo. By week 48, 63.1% of baseline fractures/pseudofractures healed fully with burosumab, compared with 35.2% with burosumab after placebo. In both groups, burosumab was associated with clinically significant and sustained improvement from baseline to week 48 in scores for patient-reported outcomes of stiffness, pain, physical function, and total distance walked in 6 min. Rates of adverse events were similar for burosumab and placebo. There were no fatal adverse events or treatment-related serious adverse events. Nephrocalcinosis scores did not change from baseline by more than one grade at either week 24 or 48. These data demonstrate that in participants with XLH, continued treatment with burosumab is well tolerated and leads to sustained correction of serum phosphorus levels, continued healing of fractures and pseudofractures, and sustained improvement in key musculoskeletal impairments.