NEW YORK – Ideaya Biosciences on Monday optioned exclusive worldwide rights to the PARG inhibitor IDE161 from Cancer Research UK and the University of Manchester and initiated investigational new drug application (IND)-enabling studies of the drug.
Ideaya began the IND-enabling studies for IDE161 with the aim to file an IND with the US Food and Drug Administration in Q4 2022. The company is studying IDE161 in tumors harboring homologous recombination deficiencies, including BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. The firm may also study the drug in tumors with other genetic alterations identified through Ideaya's biomarker discovery platform.
The rights Ideaya optioned were included in a 2018 agreement with Cancer Research UK and the University of Manchester focused on developing PARG inhibitors.
PARG is a molecular target in the same pathway as PARP. The company believes PARG inhibitors could be an option for patients with BRCA1/2-mutated tumors who are resistant or non-responsive to PARP inhibitors, Ideaya CEO Yujiro Hata said in a statement.
South San Francisco, California-based Ideaya has two candidates in clinical trials: an MAT2A inhibitor in tumors with MTAP deletions and a PKC inhibitor in uveal melanoma and MET-amplified tumors. Along with the PARG inhibitor IDE161, the company is also exploring a Pol Theta-targeted drug in preclinical studies.