Aqilion to Present Preclinical Data at Digestive Disease Week, May 2–5, Demonstrating That AQ280 Counteracts Dysfunctional Epithelial Barrier Function in Eosinophilic Esophagitis
Aqilion today announces that the company, in collaboration with Professor Arjan Bredenoord of Amsterdam University Medical Center and Dr Mirelle Kleuskens at University of Utrecht, will present new data from the AQ280 program at the scientific conference Digestive Disease Week (DDW) in Chicago. The study aims to advance understanding of how deterioration of esophageal barrier function can be managed in patients with Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE).
A poster entitled “THE HIGHLY SELECTIVE JAK1 INHIBITOR AQ280 COUNTERACTS INTERLEUKIN 13 AND ONCOSTATIN M-DRIVEN ESOPHAGEAL EPITHELIAL BARRIER DYSFUNCTION” will be presented on May 2 in the session “Eosinophilic Esophagitis: Biology and Mechanisms.” The study demonstrates effects that are unique to AQ280 compared with competing, already established treatments. AQ280 exhibits both anti-inflammatory properties and the ability to counteract the mechanisms that affect esophageal epithelial cells and lead to impaired barrier function.
Professor Arjan Bredenoord serves on Aqilion’s Scientific Advisory Board alongside Professor Evan Dellon and Dr. Luc Biedermann, with a focus on the company’s development of AQ280 – a selective JAK1 inhibitor as a novel treatment for EoE. All three advisory board members are well-recognized Key Opinion Leaders in EoE and are engaged in both the design of Aqilion’s clinical studies and the company’s research activities. The collaboration with the Scientific Advisory Board is notably aimed at generating new data for presentation at scientific conferences and in peer-reviewed publications.
Sarah Fredriksson, CEO of Aqilion, commented: “The new data being presented highlight unique properties of AQ280 in the context of EoE, providing the program with a strategically important competitive advantage over current treatment options. We are very pleased with the collaborations we have had the opportunity to conduct with our Scientific Advisory Board. We will continue to support studies of barrier function in EoE patients in collaboration with Professor Arjan Bredenoord and his colleagues, as we place great importance on contributing to a deeper understanding of the disease mechanisms. In doing so, Aqilion can contribute to a better future for patients.”
For more information, please contact:
Sarah Fredriksson, CEO, AQILION AB, + 46 (0)70 261 4575, sarah.fredriksson@aqilion.co
About AQ280
AQ280 is an oral, small-molecule, super selective JAK1 inhibitor. JAK1 is an enzyme, a kinase, that accelerates inflammatory processes, which, among other things effects allergy and fibrosis. By inhibiting its mechanism, it is possible to reduce symptoms and disease development in chronic inflammatory diseases. AQ280 was well tolerated in the Aria-1 phase 1 study and showed promising effects on relevant biomarkers.
EoE patients have difficulty swallowing and orally based therapies may need to be adapted to make it easier for patients to take the drug. Aqilion has developed a formulation that allows EoE patients to drink the drug dissolved in water. In 2025, Aqilion completed a second Phase 1 clinical study (ARIA-2) in the US, evaluating the pharmacokinetic profile of the novel water-soluble tablet formulation of AQ280, intended for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE). The results clearly showed that the new formulation exhibits a pharmacokinetic profile very similar to the capsule used in the initial ARIA-1 study, with a favorable safety and tolerability profile. The study results enable a transition to phase 2 with a formulation that is specifically adapted for patients with swallowing difficulties.
About Eosinofil Esophagitis
Eosinophilic Esophagitis is an allergic disease of the esophagus. The main symptom of this chronic disease is significant difficulty swallowing, and the disease can lead to scar tissue development and strictures of the esophagus causing food to get stuck or impact the esophagus. The disease can occur in patients of any age, and it usually debuts at the age of 20-40. There is a clear medical need for new therapies as the number of patients diagnosed is rapidly increasing and the knowledge and awareness of the disease becomes more widespread. Currently, two different types of drugs have been approved: treatment with corticosteroids and treatment with a biologic drug, an anti-IL4/13 antibody. There is currently no approved treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis with the same mechanism of action as Aqilion’s drug candidate AQ280.
About Aqilion
Aqilion is a Swedish biopharma company that develops innovative new therapies for diseases caused by chronic inflammation and dysfunctional immune reactions.
The company is mainly active in the idea stage to early clinical development. The goal is to demonstrate the clinical and commercial potential of the medical innovation to attract industrial partners and buyers, who in turn have the capacity to continue clinical development and take the drug to the patients.
Aqilion runs its development programs in a partly virtual organization in close collaboration with selected partners with specific expertise in drug development.
AQILION AB (publ) is a Swedish public limited company headquartered in Helsingborg, Sweden. www.aqilion.com