Next Step for OX40/OX40L: Real-World Data in Atopic Dermatitis, With Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD

In an interview with HCPLive, Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, from Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine, said that the OX40/ OX40L target shows promise as a first-line treatment for conditions such as atopic dermatitis, asthma, and chronic urticaria in phase 2 and 3 clinical trials.

“I think that these therapies definitely are going to be the right first-time choice for some patients, for others that might feel that they want to get a little more experience; they might be used after other systemic therapies,” Chovatiya said. “The nice thing is that we have data for both of these populations, and so I look forward to seeing some more of those sub-analyses to really help us understand what it means to be truly naive, or treatment-experienced and be treated with drugs like rocatinlimab and amlitelimab.”

Chovatiya will present the OX40/OX40 ligand target at the 2025 American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting in Orlando, Florida, on Saturday, November 8, during the session, “7 for 11: Hot Therapeutic Targets in Allergy and Immunology.”1

Ahead of the meeting, HCPLive spoke with Chovatiya about what we know to date about the OX40/OX40 ligand pathway from clinical trials and how OX-40-targeted therapies fit into existing treatment. He talked about 2 treatments under investigation: rocatinlimab, an antibody that binds to the OX40 receptor on T cells, and amlitelimab, an antibody that binds to the OX40 ligand on activated antigen-presenting cells.2,3

Although rocatinlimab and amlitelimab show promise in atopic diseases, Chovatiya noted one major challenge, which is the lack of real-world data.

“These are very different drugs [from the] ones we've had before,” he said. “It's not like we're seeing yet another blocker of the IL-13 pathway, so we have an idea what to expect clinically. I think there's going to be a lot of challenges and growing pains, like with any new therapeutic class when it's introduced into the real world.”

Chovatiya looks forward to hearing his colleagues’ experiences with integrating these OX40-targeting therapies into real-world practice. He said he is curious to see how it will fall into the treatment paradigm, whether it will be used as a monotherapy or combination therapy, the timing of when patients will experience improvement, and the long-term advantages of these therapies over therapies with other targets.

“I want people to get excited, because at the end of the day, excitement is what drives more innovation,” Chovatiya said. “Understanding that we need more drugs for atopic dermatitis and every drug is going to have a slightly different home and a different scenario… really allows us to have a number of distinct therapies that coexist. You really have to be into the science…and you have to try [these drugs] …and figure out the right patients. By virtue of all of us being able to stay on top of the data and clinical use, we're going to really be able to create a picture of exactly finding the right treatment for the right patient.”

Relevant disclosures for Chovatiya include AbbVie, Amgen, Apogee Therapeutics, Arcutis, Argenx, ASLAN Pharmaceuticals, Beiersdorf, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cara Therapeutics, Dermavant, Eli Lilly and Company, FIDE, Formation Bio, Galderma, Genentech, GSK, Incyte, LEO Pharma, L’Oréal, Nektar Therapeutics, Novartis, Opsidio, Pfizer Inc., Regeneron, RAPT, Sanofi, Sitryx, and UCB.

References

1. Chovatiya R. 7 for 11: Hot Therapeutic Targets in Allergy and Immunology (OX40/OX40L). Presented at ACAAI 2025 in Orlando on Saturday, November 6, 2025.

2. Amgen And Kyowa Kirin Announce Top-Line Results from Rocatinlimab Phase 3 Ascend Long-Term Extension Study in Adults With Moderate To Severe Atopic Dermatitis. Amgen. Amgen. Published 2020. https://www.amgen.com/newsroom/press-releases/2025/09/amgen-and-kyowa-kirin-announce-top-line-results-from-rocatinlimab-phase-3-ascend-long-term-extension-study-in-adults-with-moderate-to-severe-atopic-dermatitis

3. Press Release: Sanofi’s amlitelimab met all primary and key secondary endpoints in the COAST 1 phase 3 study in adults and adolescents with atopic dermatitis. Sanofi.com. Published 2025. https://www.sanofi.com/en/media-room/press-releases/2025/2025-09-04-05-00-00-3144170