aTyr Pharma Announces New tRNA Synthetase Discovery Programs
February 11 2021 - 8:00AM
aTyr Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LIFE), a biotherapeutics company engaged
in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on
novel biological pathways, today announced that it has initiated
two new discovery programs from its tRNA synthetase platform. These
programs will investigate the functionality of selected fragments
of Alanyl-tRNA Synthetase (AARS) and Aspartyl-tRNA Synthetase
(DARS) in immunology, fibrosis and cancer. The announcement comes
after the company published a poster at the 2021 Society for
Laboratory Automation and Screening Digital International
Conference and Exhibition (SLAS) demonstrating that these
extracellular tRNA synthetase fragments bind to innate and adaptive
immune cells, including natural killer (NK) cells.
“We are pleased to initiate these discovery
programs, which build on our proprietary biology platform and add
to our developing pipeline in immunology, fibrosis and oncology,”
said Sanjay S. Shukla, M.D., M.S., President and Chief Executive
Officer of aTyr. “We continue to leverage our broad intellectual
property portfolio covering tRNA synthetases and their related
signaling pathways to translate this underexplored area of biology
into potential first-in-class therapies for diseases with high
unmet need.”
Initial research will primarily focus on further
elucidating the effects of these fragments on NK cell biology in
cancer. NK cells play an important role in innate immune responses
and may be an important therapeutic target in oncology. The
discovery programs will utilize the company’s novel approach to
identifying target receptors for tRNA synthetase fragments to help
characterize the mechanism of action of these proteins.
“These transformative findings, which received
an enthusiastic response at SLAS in our poster presentation,
highlight the important pathways that extracellular tRNA synthetase
fragments interact with, including NK cells. The research approach
was similar to the process by which we identified Neuropilin-2
(NRP2) as the target receptor for the HARS fragment that forms the
active component of our lead tRNA synthetase derived drug
candidate, ATYR1923. This finding has led to advances in our
understanding of ATYR1923 and to the development of our panel of
selective anti-NRP2 antibodies, including ATYR2810. We look forward
to further characterizing AARS and DARS binding targets to help
support and guide future drug development,” said Dr. Shukla.
About aTyr
aTyr is a biotherapeutics company engaged in the
discovery and development of innovative medicines based on novel
biological pathways. aTyr’s research and development efforts are
concentrated on a newly discovered area of biology, the
extracellular functionality and signaling pathways of tRNA
synthetases. aTyr has built a global intellectual property estate
directed to a potential pipeline of protein compositions derived
from 20 tRNA synthetase genes and their extracellular targets.
aTyr’s primary focus is ATYR1923, a clinical-stage product
candidate which binds to the Neuropilin-2 receptor and is designed
to down-regulate immune engagement in inflammatory lung diseases.
For more information, please visit http://www.atyrpharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are usually
identified by the use of words such as “anticipates,” “believes,”
“estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “projects,”
“seeks,” “should,” “will,” and variations of such words or similar
expressions. We intend these forward-looking statements to be
covered by such safe harbor provisions for forward-looking
statements and are making this statement for purposes of complying
with those safe harbor provisions. These forward-looking statements
include statements regarding potential further research and
development activities related to, and potential utility of, the
newly identified receptor targets, the potential therapeutic
benefits and applications of our current and future product
candidates; timelines and plans with respect to certain development
activities; and certain development goals. These forward-looking
statements also reflect our current views about our plans,
intentions, expectations, strategies and prospects, which are based
on the information currently available to us and on assumptions we
have made. Although we believe that our plans, intentions,
expectations, strategies and prospects, as reflected in or
suggested by these forward-looking statements, are reasonable, we
can give no assurance that the plans, intentions, expectations or
strategies will be attained or achieved. All forward-looking
statements are based on estimates and assumptions by our management
that, although we believe to be reasonable, are inherently
uncertain. Furthermore, actual results may differ materially from
those described in these forward-looking statements and will be
affected by a variety of risks and factors that are beyond our
control including, without limitation, uncertainty regarding the
COVID-19 pandemic, risks associated with the discovery, development
and regulation of our product candidates, the risk that we or our
partners may cease or delay preclinical or clinical development
activities for any of our existing or future product candidates for
a variety of reasons (including difficulties or delays in patient
enrollment in planned clinical trials), the possibility that
existing collaborations could be terminated early, and the risk
that we may not be able to raise the additional funding required
for our business and product development plans, as well as those
risks set forth in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K,
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and in our other SEC filings. Except
as required by law, we assume no obligation to update publicly any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Contact:Ashlee
DunstonDirector, Investor Relations and Corporate
Communicationsadunston@atyrpharma.com
aTyr Pharma (NASDAQ:LIFE)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
aTyr Pharma (NASDAQ:LIFE)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024