Salubris Biotherapeutics announces $35 million in financing

Salubris Biotherapeutics, Inc. announced a new capital infusion of $35 million to fund continued research and development of clinical and pre-clinical programs. SalubrisBio also provided progress updates for JK07, the first investigational antibody fusion protein for heart failure, JK08, the first investigational IL15-CTLA4 antibody fusion for solid tumors and JK06, a first-in-class biparatopic antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) targeting a known tumor antigen.

“We are pleased with the clinical progress across our pipeline of novel, complex biologic therapeutics, positioning us for multiple inflection points over the coming year and into 2025,” said Sam Murphy, Chief Executive Officer of SalubrisBio. “Enrollment of the first patient in our Phase 2 clinical trial of JK07 is an important milestone in our heart failure program. Promising 6-month, Phase 1b data reported last year suggests that JK07 has the potential to improve heart function and long-term outcomes. We look forward to building on these promising findings and potentially delivering a new treatment option that can restore quality of life for heart failure patients.”

JK07 Phase 2 study design
RENEU-HF (NCT06369298) is a Phase 2, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multiple-dose trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of JK07 in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). The study is expected to enroll 282 subjects who will be randomly assigned (1:1:1) to receive multiple doses of JK07 low dose, JK07 high dose, or placebo. The co-primary endpoints for HFrEF are improvement in ejection fraction, and safety and tolerability, and the primary endpoint for HFpEF is safety and tolerability.

Together, HFrEF and HFpEF affect an estimated 6.2 million Americans1 and more than 64 million people worldwide2. Heart failure is a chronic condition in which patients experience progressively worsening symptoms and quality of life, hospitalizations and death.

JK08 Phase 1b/2 study progress
The ongoing Phase 1b/2, open label, dose escalation and cohort expansion study (NCT05620134) is designed to evaluate the safety and preliminary anti-tumor activity of JK08 in patients with unresectable locally, advanced or metastatic cancer. More than fifty subjects have received JK08 monotherapy in the ongoing dose escalation cohorts, and the first patient has now been dosed in the cohort expansion phase, which will further define the safety and initial efficacy of JK08 in combination with targeted agents including pembrolizumab. SalubrisBio plans to report additional data from this study in the second half of 2024.

“We are encouraged by the early data observed in the ongoing dose escalation portion of the JK08 Phase 1b/2 study and look forward to exploring the clinical benefit of combining JK08 with pembrolizumab in solid tumors,” added Murphy.

JK06 CTA filing
JK06 is positioned to be the first biparatopic ADC targeting a known tumor antigen for which no approved therapies currently exist. Given limited expression and internalization, this antigen is ideally suited for the biparatopic design intended to overcome both limitations, and JK06 has demonstrated low picomolar affinity and robust internalization of the target. It has further demonstrated a highly favorable risk:benefit profile non-clinically and will now be evaluated in a dose-escalation study, including a basket of solid tumors.
MB Bureau