Scholar Rock selects I-O product candidate SRK-181 for development

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Scholar Rock (Nasdaq: SRRK) yesterday announced that it has selected SRK‑181, a highly specific inhibitor of TGFβ1 activation, as the first product candidate in its TGFβ1 cancer immunotherapy program based on the strength of its preclinical data and human translational insights.

Scholar Rock has initiated manufacturing and is progressing preclinical development efforts with plans to initiate a Phase I trial in patients with solid tumors in mid-2020.

“Given that a majority of cancer patients fail to respond to checkpoint blockade therapies, we are eager to advance the next product candidate from our pipeline of growth factor modulators to potentially address a key mechanism of pre-existing resistance,” said Nagesh Mahanthappa, president and chief executive of Scholar Rock.