aTyr Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:LIFE) hesitated Monday morning, after the company filed for sale of up to three million shares of its common stock by Aspire Capital Fund.
The San Diego-based company was also in the news last week when announced that its partner Kyorin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., or Kyorin, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kyorin Holdings, Inc., has dosed the first subjects in a Phase 1 trial of aTyr’s lead therapeutic candidate ATYR1923 (known as KRP-R120 in Japan).
The Phase 1 trial, which is being conducted by Kyorin, is a placebo-controlled study to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics and immunogenicity of ATYR1923 in 32 healthy Japanese male volunteers. Assuming successful completion of the study, Kyorin would then be able to initiate patient trials in interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) in Japan.
Said CEO Sanjay Shukla, "ATYR1923 is a potential first-in-class immunomodulator and may present a promising new approach to treating ILDs,
"To date, ATYR1923 has had a favorable safety profile in trials conducted in the U.S. and Australia. We look forward to the outcome of this study in a Japanese population as we continue to advance our ILD program globally."
Said Kyorin CEO Yutaka Ogihara, "We are pleased to initiate clinical development of ATYR1923 in Japan by dosing the first healthy volunteers in this study.
"This trial is an important step towards offering a potential new treatment to ILD patients in Japan."
Kyorin is aTyr’s partner for the development and commercialization of ATYR1923 for ILDs in Japan.
LIFE shares dipped 4.7 cents, or 1.1%, to $4.26.
