GRI Bio has received a “Decision to Grant” notice from the Japan Patent Office for the patent application No. 2023-000750 titled, “Prevention and Treatment of Inflammatory Conditions.” The granted patent covers claims including compositions and methods for modulating type 2 and/or type 1 invariant NKT cells in the prevention and treatment of inflammatory conditions. More specifically, the patent covers the prevention and treatment of inflammatory, fibrotic and autoimmune conditions through the administration of a Retinoic Acid Receptor agonist that inhibits iNKT cells in a subject. GRI Bio is currently advancing its lead program GRI-0621, a small molecule RAR-beta dual agonist candidate that inhibits the activity of human iNKT cells, in a Phase 2a, randomized, double-blind, multi-center, placebo-controlled, parallel-design, 2-arm study for the treatment of IPF. IPF is a rare chronic progressive pulmonary disease with abnormal scarring of the lung blocking the movement of oxygen into the bloodstream. Interim data is expected in Q4 2024 and topline data in Q1 2025.
