Co-Founders Awarded $1 Million Grant to Develop Congestive Heart Failure Drug Candidate
Minneapolis, MN - Herald Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing life-saving therapies for cardiopulmonary diseases, announced that Chief Scientific Officer David Ingbar, MD, and Chief Development Officer Robert Schumacher, PhD, received a $1 million Transformational Research Award from the Dr. Ralph and Marian Falk Medical Research Trust.
The grant will fund a first-in-human clinical trial using an aerosolized form of Herald Therapeutics’ lead candidate, ThyrOxy™, for patients with congestive heart failure.
The clinical trial will be led by Dr. Ingar and Herald Therapeutics Chief Medical Officer Timothy Rich, MD, and conducted at University of Minnesota-affiliated hospitals.
The development and preclinical testing of aerosolized ThyrOxy was supported in part by a $350,000 Falk Catalyst Research Award to Drs. Ingbar and Schumacher.
ThyrOxy™ is a targeted, lung-safe form of T3—a naturally occurring thyroid hormone—designed to replenish T3 to normal levels and restore healthy lung and heart function. In a phase 2 clinical trial, ThyrOxy was delivered in liquid form directly into the lungs via the breathing tube connected to mechanical ventilation.
“The initial clinical trial demonstrated that direct lung delivery is a safe and effective way to deliver ThyrOxy,” said Dr. Ingbar. “An aerosol version of ThyrOxy enables direct lung delivery to patients who have pulmonary edema or lung inflammation but aren’t on a ventilator. Most patients with congestive heart failure have pulmonary edema. Targeted delivery of aerosolized ThyrOxy is designed to speed the resolution of pulmonary edema in hospitalized, non-intubated acute heart failure patients and will have the added potential benefit of increasing myocardial contractility and lessening any pulmonary inflammation.”
“The development of an aerosol form of ThyrOxy is a pivotal milestone in our overall development strategy,” said Dr. Schumacher. “Aerosolized ThyrOxy allows delivery to a much broader patient population and the Falk Transformational Award expands ThyrOxy treatment to congestive heart failure patients, where there is a significant unmet need.”
About Falk Transformational Awards
Through the Falk Transformational Awards, the Dr. Ralph and Marian Falk Medical Research Trust continues to “support successful Catalyst Award Recipients’ work, helping move a healthcare innovation toward the next step in commercial development, tackling critical scientific and therapeutic roadblocks, and opening new avenues for treating and curing disease.”
About ThyrOxy
ThyrOxy™ is Herald Therapeutics’ proprietary thyroid hormone–based therapeutic platform, designed to address the fundamental biology of acute lung injury. In addition to its lead indication in ARDS, ThyrOxy is being advanced in Infant Respiratory Distress Syndrome (IRDS) and Acute Heart Failure. ThyrOxy was originally developed at the University of Minnesota and is exclusively licensed to Herald Therapeutics.
About Herald Therapeutics
Herald Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, developing ThyrOxy, a thyroid hormone–based therapeutic platform targeting life-threatening lung and cardiac diseases. The company’s lead programs are in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), Infant Respiratory Distress Syndrome (IRDS), and Acute Heart Failure. For more information, please visit heraldtx.com.
Investor & Media Contact
Wade A. Smith, CEO
Herald Therapeutics, Inc.
wsmith@heraldtx.com | 412-216-9988