Our news

First patient treated in MELD-ATG

17. December 2020



INNODIA network for type 1 diabetes
kicks off clinical studies

MELD-ATG First Patient



Leuven, Belgium [December 15, 2020] – INNODIA announces the start of the first of 4 clinical trials, in collaboration with the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI). This marks an important step towards the development of novel treatments to prevent and cure type 1 diabetes.


People who have been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the past 6 weeks can now participate in a study, called MELD-ATG, a trial in collaboration with Sanofi.


MELD-ATG is an academic-led INNODIA clinical trial, under the supervision of KU Leuven, studying whether ATG (or anti-thymocyte globulin), antibodies targeting the immune system, can stop the body´s immune attack against the insulin-producing beta-cells in newly diagnosed people with type 1 diabetes. The study takes up to 24 months.

The first 23 years old participant now received his initial dose of ATG and further treatments will be given to children, adolescents and young adults within MELD-ATG (5 to 25 years old).


More intervention studies to come

In the next few weeks, INNODIA is launching three more trials with the same goal: protecting and strengthening the insulin producing beta-cell in the pancreas. INNODIA is determined to find a way to stop the body´s immune attack from further destroying beta cells in newly diagnosed people with type 1 diabetes.

  • Ver-A-T1D (led by Prof Pieber, MUG Graz)
    ClinicalTrails.gov: http://bit.ly/2We39zF; NCT04545151; EudraCT 2020-000435-45
  • Iscalimab l (CFZ533 in collaboration with Novartis)
    ClinicalTrails.gov: http://bit.ly/3meiJGg; NCT04129528; EudraCT 2018-004553
  • IMPACT (in collaboration with Imcyse)
    ClinicalTrails.gov: http://bit.ly/3aiArpT; NCT04524949; EudraCT 2020-001317-20



“This is a very important moment for us.
We bring our INNODIA network to the next level,
by going from biomarker discovery to clinical interventions”


Prof. Dr. Chantal Mathieu, INNODIA Coordinator and Endocrinologist at UZ Leuven.

Putting patients first

A priority for INNODIA is to keep the needs and concerns of people living with type 1 diabetes at the center of the project. INNODIA is therefore closely guided by the patients themselves through the Patient Advisory Committee (PAC).

“With a strong community of people with type 1 diabetes and big pharma companies involved, we have high hopes to discover products that will increase the quality of life for people living with type one diabetes,” says
Dr. Olivier Arnaud, PAC member.

For more information visit: www.innodia.eu; Innodia - Clinical Trials

Media Contact
Veerle Vanhuyse
INNODIA Communications Manager
veerle.vanhuyse@kuleuven.be
Phone: +32 16 19 38 49


About INNODIA

INNODIA is a unique and interdisciplinary research and clinical operational network of 40 partners, including preeminent academic institutions from Europe, industrial partners, charitable foundations, small sized enterprises, and a dedicated group of advising patients, bringing together their knowledge and experience to achieve one common goal: "To fight type 1 diabetes". Launched in Januery 2016, this european based public private partnership (PPP) receives funding from the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking (Grant Agreement Number: 115797) and is supported by the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program, European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), The Leona M and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust and JDRF. INNODIA HARVEST (Grant Agreement Number: 945268), an extension of INNODIA, enables to run more clinical trials on the backbone of the INNODIA clinical network.