Scholar Rock Announces Issuance of U.S. Patent Broadly Relevant to Antibodies that Modulate TGFβ Activation

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 9, 2020-- Scholar Rock (NASDAQ: SRRK), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of serious diseases in which protein growth factors play a fundamental role, today announced that the United States Patent Office (USPTO) issued U.S. Patent No. 10,597,443 with an expiry of May 2034. This patent broadly covers methods for making activation modulators of TGFβ that utilize Scholar Rock’s proprietary platform approach of targeting the precursor form of growth factors.

“We are pleased with this important addition to our patent portfolio as it further differentiates our leadership position in the development of antibodies that modulate signaling of TGFβ isoforms,” said Nagesh Mahanthappa, Ph.D., President and CEO of Scholar Rock. “TGFβ is a key driver of a number of disease-relevant processes, including fibrosis and immune system evasion by cancer cells, for which we have discovered highly potent and selective inhibitors of TGFβ1 activation. Notably, this patent covers SRK-181, our product candidate being developed for the treatment of cancers resistant to checkpoint inhibitor therapy, such as anti-PD-(L)1 antibodies.”

The issued claims are directed to manufacture methods that include selection of modulators that specifically bind a large latent complex antigen of TGFβ isoforms. This broadly relates to TGFβ activation inhibitors that are specific to the context of presenting molecules, such as GARP and LTBP, as well as activation inhibitors that are not dependent on a specific presenting molecule. The latter class of antibodies includes our cancer immunotherapy clinical product candidate, SRK-181, being developed to expand the number of patients who could benefit from checkpoint inhibitor therapies.

About Scholar Rock

Scholar Rock is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative medicines for the treatment of serious diseases in which signaling by protein growth factors plays a fundamental role. Scholar Rock is creating a pipeline of novel product candidates with the potential to transform the lives of patients suffering from a wide range of serious diseases, including neuromuscular disorders, cancer, fibrosis and anemia. Scholar Rock’s newly elucidated understanding of the molecular mechanisms of growth factor activation enabled it to develop a proprietary platform for the discovery and development of monoclonal antibodies that locally and selectively target these signaling proteins at the cellular level. By developing product candidates that act in the disease microenvironment, the Company intends to avoid the historical challenges associated with inhibiting growth factors for therapeutic effect. Scholar Rock believes its focus on biologically validated growth factors may facilitate a more efficient development path. For more information, please visit www.ScholarRock.com or follow Scholar Rock on Twitter (@ScholarRock) and LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/scholar-rock/).

Scholar Rock® is a registered trademark of Scholar Rock, Inc.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Scholar Rock’s future expectations, plans and prospects, including without limitation, Scholar Rock’s expectations regarding its growth, strategy, progress; IP strategy; and timing of its clinical trials for SRK-015, SRK-181, and other product candidates. The use of words such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” “future,” “potential,” or “continue,” and other similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include Scholar Rock’s ability to provide the financial support, resources and expertise necessary to identify and develop product candidates on the expected timeline; competition from third parties that are developing products for similar uses; Scholar Rock’s ability to obtain, maintain and protect its intellectual property; and those risks more fully discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Scholar Rock’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties, and other important factors in Scholar Rock’s subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements represent Scholar Rock’s views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and Scholar Rock undertakes no duty to update this information unless required by law.

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Scholar Rock Contact:
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Source: Scholar Rock