Developmental Immunotoxicology Assessment of Rituximab in Cynomolgus Monkeys

Rituximab is a chimeric murine/human-engineered immunoglobulin (Ig) G1 anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, selectively depleting CD20-expressing cells in peripheral blood and lymphoid tissues. As part of the rituximab registration-enabling program for rheumatoid arthritis, cynomolgus monkey embryo-fetal development and pre- and postnatal developmental toxicity studies were performed. In both studies, female cynomolgus monkeys were administered rituximab iv at doses of 0/0, 15/20, 37.5/50, and 75/100 mg/kg (loading dose/study dose) from gestation day (GD) 20 to 50 for the embryo-fetal development study and GD 20 to postpartum (pp) day 28 for the pre- and postnatal study. In the embryo-fetal development study, although maternal dosing ended during the first trimester at GD 50, placental transfer of rituximab to fetuses was demonstrated at GD 100. Consequently, fetuses demonstrated B-cell depletion in lymphoid tissues at GD 100. Repletion of B cells was demonstrated in infants in a follow-up pre- and postnatal study following fetal and neonatal exposure. In the pre- and postnatal study, despite B-cell depletion, there was no significant functional consequence on the infant's ability to mount T-cell-dependent antibody responses following vaccination or antigenic challenge. Overall, rituximab was well tolerated at maximum feasible doses up to 100 mg/kg in pregnant cynomolgus monkeys and their infants after exposure from the period of organogenesis throughout pregnancy, parturition, and postnatal development. Importantly, the preclinical data have been concordant with the clinical data in children for cases where rituximab was administered during pregnancy.