Dong-A ST and Cyrus Therapeutics Launch Joint Research on Immune and Inflammatory Disease Therapies

"Strengthening the Immune and Inflammatory Disease Pipeline"

On September 16, Dong-A ST announced that it had signed a joint research agreement with Cyrus Therapeutics to develop therapeutics for immune and inflammatory diseases.

Under the agreement, Cyrus Therapeutics will utilize its independently established molecular glue degrader library and screening system to identify candidate compounds targeting immune and inflammatory diseases. The discovered candidates will then be jointly developed, leveraging Dong-A ST's preclinical and clinical development capabilities.

Despite the emergence of blockbuster antibody therapies and JAK inhibitors, there remains a significant unmet need in the field of immune and inflammatory diseases. Many patients do not respond to existing treatments or experience limited efficacy, and long-term use continues to raise safety concerns such as infections and cardiovascular complications.

Molecular glue degraders based on protein degradation technology are gaining attention as an alternative to overcome these limitations. Molecular glue degraders connect disease-associated target proteins with the cell's degradation machinery, inducing selective protein degradation. This goes beyond merely inhibiting protein activity to eliminating the protein itself. The approach enhances accessibility to previously undruggable targets, maintains long-term efficacy with lower doses, and offers advantages in multi-pathway regulation and safety improvement.

Kim Byungmoon, CEO of Cyrus Therapeutics, stated, "The immune and inflammatory disease field is characterized by significant variability in patient responses and clear limitations of existing therapies. Molecular glue degraders not only open up new targets but also provide deeper and more sustained therapeutic effects as a next-generation option. Through this collaboration, we will actively leverage the strengths of both companies to achieve rapid results."

Kim Mikyung, Head of Research at Dong-A ST, commented, "This joint research agreement is significant in that it strengthens Dong-A ST's immune and inflammatory disease pipeline, which is a core therapeutic area for us, and accelerates our modality expansion strategy beyond small molecule drug development to include targeted protein degraders (TPDs), biopharmaceuticals, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and gene therapies. By combining the capabilities of both companies, we aim to deliver best-in-class targeted protein degraders in the field of immune and inflammatory diseases."