Thryv Therapeutics Acquires Exclusive Rights to New SGK1 Inhibitors
News provided byThryv Therapeutics Inc · 2 min read
Thryv Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, has expanded its pipeline with the acquisition of exclusive worldwide rights to a new class of SGK1 inhibitors from Spain’s CSIC and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM). This licensing deal, effective July 1, 2026, allows Thryv to develop compounds for both neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases, including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, alongside its ongoing cardiac programs.
The newly licensed series, distinct from Thryv’s existing SGK1 inhibitors, provides the company with a second chemical foundation. This means Thryv can now tailor its compounds to specific indications, optimizing its current molecules for cardiac and cardiometabolic diseases while developing new drugs designed to target the brain.
Dr. Debra Odink, President and Chief Development Officer of Thryv, expressed enthusiasm about the license. "This is a genuinely exciting day for Thryv," she said. "We have proven we can turn our conviction into clinical assets, and this license gives us a second, independent chemical foundation. We now have a credible, systematic way to bring SGK1 biology to bear on some of the hardest problems in drug development."
The licensed invention was developed by research groups with complementary expertise. The medicinal chemistry team, led by Drs. Ana Martínez and Carmen Gil, and the cardiovascular group, led by Dr. Eduardo Oliver Pérez, at CSIC's Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas, collaborated with the neurobiology group at UAM's Institute for Biomedical Research and the vascular pharmacology group led by Dr. Ana Briones Alonso.
Activated SGK1 is implicated in several pathways central to neurodegeneration, including tau phosphorylation, protein misfolding, neuroinflammatory signaling, and cellular stress responses. This makes SGK1 a promising target for diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
Thryv’s lead asset, THRV-1268, is an orally available, selective SGK1 inhibitor currently being evaluated in the WAVE II study for patients with Long QT Syndrome Type 2. The company plans to follow this with ASPIRE-HF, a Phase 2a study in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. The newly licensed series is expected to be developed in parallel, with initial characterization work beginning immediately and a first development candidate targeted for nomination in 2027.
Odink highlighted the potential of the newly licensed compounds, stating, "Parkinson's and Alzheimer's remain two of the hardest problems in drug development. With this license, we now have a credible, systematic way to bring SGK1 biology to bear on them, while our cardiac programs continue to move forward at full speed."
Thryv Therapeutics Inc., headquartered in Montréal, Québec, continues to advance its proprietary portfolio of selective SGK1 inhibitors, focusing on both inherited arrhythmia syndromes and heart failure, as well as expanding into neurodegenerative diseases.