Granular Therapeutics, a UK-based biotech company specialising in precision biologic therapies for treating mast cell driven disorders, announced clinical candidate selection for its lead programme which has demonstrated promising results in initial preclinical studies.
Granular Therapeutics has now commenced proof-of-concept (POC) and IND-enabling studies as it prepares for clinical development.
Since starting work on these concepts in 2019 with backing from Medicxi, Granular Therapeutics has studied the biology of mast cells and their role in chronic inflammatory diseases. It has developed a pipeline that selectively targets mast cells. This approach can drive direct and specific mast cell inhibition, avoid systemic toxicity and enable safe chronic dosing for mast cell driven diseases such as chronic urticaria or systemic mastocytosis.
Brian Kim, Scientific Advisory Board member of Granular Therapeutics, said: “Recent data in the field of mast cell driven diseases like urticaria have shown that tremendous efficacy can be attained, but safety concerns still remain, especially in chronic disease settings. Granular offers a next generation modality that offers the promise of increased selectivity and safety.”
Thibaud Portal, Chief Executive Officer of Granular Therapeutics, commented: “Selective mast cell targeting offers outstanding opportunities to address a range of disease indications with a high unmet medical need. I believe this new approach is a significant advancement in the field of chronic inflammatory diseases and that Granular has most exciting pipeline in the field.”