Pipeline

Pliant Therapeutics is pursuing drug development programs for a range of fibrotic diseases, focusing on tissue-specific integrin modulation and TGF-β1 signaling inhibition.

Program

Discovery

In vitro

In vivo

Preclinical

Lead Op

IND Enabling

Clinical

Phase 1

Phase 2

PLN-74809

Dual selective inhibitor
of α_Vβ₁ / α_Vβ₆
IPF, PSC, Kidney

Clinical Phase 1

α_Vβ₁

Selective inhibitor of α_Vβ₁
NASH/liver fibrosis

Preclinical IND Enabling

Undisclosed

Discovery In vivo

TGF-β1 Target

Multiple fibrosis diseases

Discovery In vivo

Pliant’s lead program, PLN-74809, is a small-molecule, dual selective inhibitor of α_Vβ₁ / α_Vβ₆ for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). These integrins cause upstream activation of TGF-β1 in actively fibrotic tissue. Inhibition of these integrins will block TGF-β1 activation, thereby preventing the growth of fibrotic tissue within the lung and bile ducts. PLN-74809 has entered clinical testing, following FDA- approval of the IND.

Pliant’s second program is a small molecule, selective inhibitor of α_Vβ₁ for the treatment of end-stage liver fibrosis in NASH. Clinical testing is anticipated to start in 2019.

Pliant has additional programs in IPF leveraging a tissue-specific approach to modulating TGF-β1 activation. Epithelial cells and fibroblasts have emerged as principal players in fibrosis pathophysiology. Our animal models confirm that selectively targeting TGF-β1 activation in these cells holds great therapeutic promise.

Pliant is also focused on developing small molecules to selectively target transcriptional regulation of epithelial-to-mesenchymal-transition (EMT), a process that is induced by TGF-β1. By selectively targeting EMT, Pliant aims to target many fibrotic diseases through novel mechanisms.