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Alumis raises $259M to progress TYK2 portfolio

2024-03-06

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Just days before it’s set to share new data for its lead candidate, Alumis raised $259 million in a series C that will bring that same programme into pivotal trials.

The company is presenting Phase II data at the upcoming American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) annual meeting for its oral TYK2 inhibitor TYK2 inhibitor ESK-001 to treat moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

The upsized financing, which was co-led by existing investor Foresite Capital and new investors Samsara BioCapital and venBio Partners, will help Alumis launch Phase III studies of ESK-001 next half.

The round also saw participation from new investors Cormorant Asset Management, SR One, Lilly Asia Ventures, Nextech, Ally Bridge Group, HBM Healthcare Investments, Omega Funds, Piper Heartland Healthcare and existing investors AyurMaya, an affiliate of Matrix Capital Management and a US-based healthcare-focused fund.

Best-in-class selectivity?

Alumis thinks ESK-001 could be best-in-class in the increasingly competitive TYK2-autoimmune space. For more on the psoriasis landscape, see KOL Views Q&A: Leading dermatologist lays out decision tree for psoriasis treatments.

Bristol Myers Squibb has the only FDA-approved TYK2 inhibitor TYK2 inhibitor, Sotyktu (deucravacitinib), which has set the efficacy bar for oral treatments in a disease space dominated by injectable biologics.

The next TYK2 blocker most likely to hit the market is Takeda’s TAK-279, which is in a Phase III trial to treat moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

According to Alumis, ESK-001 is designed to be more selective for TYK2 than Sotyktu or other therapies in the clinic. The compound showed no pharmacological inhibition of JAK1/2/3 in Phase I testing, with no observed JAK-related safety events to-date.

Beyond psoriasis

Wednesday’s financing will also support two separate, ongoing Phase II trials of ESK-001: the LUMUS study in systemic lupus erythematosus, and the OPTYK-1 proof-of-concept trial in non-infectious uveitis.

Alumis’ TYK2 inhibitor TYK2 inhibitor portfolio also includes A-005, a central nervous system-penetrating compound in preclinical development for neuro-inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS).

The programme follows an emerging trend of exploring TYK2 inhibition for neurodegenerative diseases. Sudo Biosciences, which raised a $116-million Series B in December, plans to bring its brain-penetrant oral candidate, SUDO-550, into the clinic this year for MS, while Biohaven, a Pfizer spin-off, plans to start a pair of Phase II/III trials next half for its dual TYK2/JAK1 inhibitor BHV-8000 to treat Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.

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