Symberix Awarded Multiple Grants from National Institutes of Health to Expand
Platform of Microbiome-Targeted Drugs

 NIH Grants Support Development of Microbiome-Targeted Drugs for Multiple Indications

Durham, NC (June 4, 2019) – Symberix, a preclinical stage company dedicated to the development of novel pharmaceutical treatments for lower gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, has been awarded two Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The two SBIR grants collectively totaling over $1.5 million are awarded by the NIH’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. The funded efforts include high-throughput screening, identification of new chemotypes, and preclinical animal studies.

Long-term objectives of the planned work include the development of a therapeutic adjunct to prevent adverse gastrointestinal events associated with essential drugs and the development of a microbiome-targeted drug to treat inflammatory bowel disease. Symberix is developing first-in-class therapies that target the microbiome to selectively eliminate harmful bacterial activity without disrupting other gut bacteria.

Symberix, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing the first generation of gut microbiome-targeting drugs to treat lower GI disorders. Gut microbes express numerous proteins, including a family of bacterial β-glucuronidase enzymes, capable of generating toxic metabolites of many common medications in the lower GI tract. Symberix is developing bacterial β-glucuronidase inhibitors as adjunctive therapy to mitigate drug-induced toxicities and is exploring their use as monotherapy for other lower GI disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease. Symberix’s internal team and external advisors have a deep understanding of the biology of the gut microbiome, and extensive drug discovery and clinical development experience.

Contact:
Greg Mossinghoff
Chief Business Officer
Symberix, Inc.
Greg.Mossinghoff@Symberix.com