Genomics, a science-led biotech company using large-scale genetic information for drug discovery and development and to develop innovative precision healthcare tools, has formed a strategic partnership with Greywolf Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company advancing novel antigen modulation treatments.
Under the agreement, Genomics will curate and analyse large-scale genetic datasets to study how variants of the Endoplasmic Reticulum Aminopeptidases (ERAP) enzymes influence disease risk across various autoimmune conditions.
Autoimmune diseases occur when the immune system mistakenly recognises the body’s own proteins as foreign and attacks healthy tissue. They affect around one in ten people, with numbers expected to increase over time. These conditions can affect quality of life and place a burden on patients, leading to chronic inflammation, tissue damage, and systemic dysfunction. Current treatments, such as anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive medications, often focus on immune suppression and symptom management and may not achieve full disease control.
ERAP1 and ERAP2 are cellular proteins involved in the processing and presentation of antigens. The role of ERAP is to trim peptides that are presented on the cell surface as antigens and recognised by T cells. Genetic variations in ERAPs can alter this process and result in autoimmunity, in which T cells are activated, triggering an immune response on healthy tissue. These variations can increase susceptibility to autoimmune diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriasis.
Utilising their proprietary tools, expertise, and the world’s largest harmonised interrogable genotype-phenotype data resource, Genomics will curate and analyse several independent genetic association studies to identify genetic support linking specific ERAP variants to multiple autoimmune diseases and validate them as potential therapeutic targets. The insights will guide Greywolf Therapeutics in selecting indication opportunities.
Professor Xenofon Baraliakos, head of Rheumatology at the Rheumazentrum Ruhrgebiet, Herne, Germany, said, “Current treatments for autoimmune diseases can be associated with side effects or variable responses, which may affect long-term disease management for some patients, underscoring the importance of continuing to investigate new therapeutic targets. Efforts to better understand shared genetic pathways, like ERAPs, across multiple autoimmune conditions may help advance future strategies aimed at addressing the underlying drivers of disease.”
Professor Sir Peter Donnelly, CEO and co-Founder of Genomics, said, “We are delighted to be working with Greywolf Therapeutics to support the development of their disease pipeline using our unique datasets and scientific expertise, with the potential to address autoimmune diseases with high unmet need. During my time as Director of the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics at Oxford, I led large-scale genome-wide studies that helped pinpoint ERAP1 and ERAP2 as genes associated with autoimmune disease risk, providing the foundation for their use as potential therapeutic targets. Through this relationship, we look forward to building on those insights to better understand where targeting these genes could have the biggest potential benefit to patients, helping them live longer, healthier lives.”
Peter Joyce, co-founder and CEO of Greywolf Therapeutics, said, “We believe our novel targets hold great promise for treating a number of autoimmune conditions, and our Phase 1 study in axial spondyloarthritis is just the start of delivering on that potential. Understanding the genetic drivers of these diseases is crucial to assessing which patient populations to initially focus on, and we look forward to using the insights from our partnership with Genomics to further strengthen and de-risk our pipeline.”
