Halia Therapeutics Promotes Targeting the NLRP3 Inflammasome for Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment

August 17, 2022

Halia Therapeutics, the first biotechnology company to target NEK7 to block the assembly of the NLRP3 inflammasome complex, participated today in a fireside chat exploring approaches to innovate Alzheimer’s therapies at InformaConnect’s Therapeutic Focus-Neurology digital conference.

“There is very little help available for people suffering from neuroinflammatory diseases, such as Alzheimer’s (AD). We do know that IL-1β signaling is connected to NLRP3-driven inflammation in AD patients”, said Jared Bearss, COO of Halia Therapeutics. “Halia’s therapeutic inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome prevents the formation and promotes its disassembly once formed, thereby inhibiting the production and release of IL-1β and IL-18.”

Dr. David J. Bearss, CEO of Halia Therapeutics said, “Our lead therapeutic, at low nM concentrations, down-regulates proinflammatory cytokines which modulate neuroinflammatory disease. Further, it demonstrates significant in-vivo activity in mouse models, and we know that intranasal delivery of our therapeutic increases pharmacokinetic exposure in the central nervous system.” Dr. Bearss explained that NLRP3 inflammatory suppression looks promising as a key component to treat AD and the Halia compound represents a significant opportunity to provide new therapeutics for patients suffering from neurological and inflammatory diseases

About NLRP3

NLRP3 acts as an essential downstream effector of signals that triggerinflammatory responses and has been implicated in driving the onsetand progression of many chronic inflammatory diseases. Activation ofNLRP3 triggers the release of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β IL-18and induces a lytic cell death process called pyroptosis. These processes lead to chronic inflammation. Persistent activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is thought to drive the onset and progression of many conditions, including fibrotic, dermatological, and rheumatological diseases. Significant neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease,Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis are also driven by NLRP3activation.

About Halia Therapeutics, Inc.

Halia Therapeutics, Inc. is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and isdiscovering and developing novel therapeutics to improve the lives ofpatients with inflammatory disorders and neurological diseases. Halia isadvancing innovative medicines that target the immune system’sresponse to resolve chronic inflammation and eliminate the damagecaused by aberrantly activated immune responses.www.haliatherapeutics.com

Company Contact: Andi Groen, Info@haliatherapeutics.com,+1.385.355.4315,

Media Contact: Jessica Yingling, Ph.D., Little Dog Communications Inc.,jessica@litldog.com, +1.858.344.8091