Senju Pharma has launched Avarept (motugivatrep) ophthalmic suspension in Japan, marking what the company describes as the first marketed dry eye therapy in the TRPV1 antagonist class.
Licensed from fellow Japanese drugmaker Mochida, the new treatment will be distributed by biopharmaceutical company, Takeda. The launch gives clinicians in Japan access to a new mechanistic option in a disease area where therapeutic progress has been incremental and symptom control still remains a major challenge.
Dry eye disease (DED) is estimated to affect more than 20 million people in Japan, with prevalence expected to rise alongside an aging population, prolonged contact lens wear, and increasing screen use. For many patients, the condition extends beyond ocular surface dryness, contributing to inflammation, discomfort, pain, irritation, and reduced quality of life. In more severe cases, visual function may also be affected.
Current DED management still relies heavily on lubricants and anti-inflammatory approaches, with many available therapies criticized for offering incomplete relief or taking time to produce meaningful symptomatic improvement. Against that backdrop, Avarept’s arrival is notable not only because it introduces a new drug, but because it brings a long-discussed target – transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) – into routine ophthalmic practice.
Approval in Japan was supported by results from the Japanese 3-02 clinical trial, which met its primary endpoint by demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in dry eye symptoms, as measured by the DEQS score, compared with placebo.
In comments accompanying the launch, Mochida’s head of business development, Tomokazu Matsusue, said, “We are very pleased that the TRPV1 antagonist, which has been researched over many years since its discovery, has now been launched through Senju's extensive development efforts as the world's first DED treatment with TRPV1 antagonistic activity. We sincerely hope that Avarept will contribute to improving symptoms in the many patients suffering from DED."
The product also represents a milestone for TRPV1 antagonism more broadly, a mechanism that has been explored for years across multiple indications but has historically faced setbacks – particularly in systemic drug development, where earlier candidates were limited by adverse effects such as hyperthermia.
More recent programs have sought to reduce those liabilities, and a number of TRPV1-targeting candidates remain in development across pain, metabolic disease, irritable bowel syndrome, and ophthalmology.
Source: Pharmaphorum.
