Oxaborole
Identify and advance an oxaborole candidate into clinical development for the treatment of Chagas disease
current phase of drug development
updated 2 Oct 2026
Oxaboroles are a promising class of oral drug candidates for the treatment of diseases caused by trypanosomatids, including sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis, and Chagas disease. Beyond acoziborole, DNDi has evaluated DNDI-6148, which demonstrated excellent efficacy in pre-clinical models of both leishmaniasis and Chagas disease.
Following encouraging efficacy and safety data, DNDI-6148 was endorsed as a clinical candidate in 2020 and progressed through Phase I single ascending dose (SAD) studies. Although the SAD study was completed, development of DNDI-6148 was deprioritized due to reproductive toxicity signals and remains on hold.
In parallel, AN2 Therapeutics developed AN2-502998 (formerly AN15368), a benzoxaborole prodrug with the same mechanism of action as DNDI-6148. Both compounds demonstrated potent activity against Trypanosoma cruzi parasites across multiple pre-clinical models by inhibiting CPSF3, an essential enzyme involved in parasite mRNA processing, leading to parasite death.
Project updates
2026
Under AN2 leadership, both Phase I SAD and multiple ascending dose (MAD) studies with AN2-502998 were completed, demonstrating a favourable safety and tolerability profile at exposure levels consistent with predicted therapeutic activity. Preparations for Phase II studies are currently underway with this front-runner, while DNDI-6148 remains as a backup option.
2023
DNDi and AN2 Therapeutics began collaborating to assess and compare both compounds and determine which candidate is best positioned to advance into Phase II clinical development with the shared goal of developing a transformative new oral treatment for people living with chronic Chagas disease.
News & resources
Clinical trials documents
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