Peptide News Digest

#Hepcidin

4 stories

Industry · View digest

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SLN) Closed Its Upsized $175 Million Underwritten Public Offering of American Depositary Shares Following the August 10 Phase 2 SANRECO Trial Win in Polycythemia Vera Where Divesiran Achieved 88% Response Versus 19% on Placebo (P<0.0001, 69% Placebo-Adjusted Response Rate); The Offering Priced on August 11 at $13.50 per ADS for 12,962,963 ADSs and the Underwriters (Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, Cantor, and William Blair as Joint Book-Running Managers) Fully Exercised Their 30-Day Overallotment Option for an Additional 1,944,444 ADSs Bringing the Total to 14,907,407 ADSs; The Financing Provides the Capital to Advance Divesiran Into Phase 3 (Planned Initiation H1 2027) Plus Broader Pipeline Progression Including the GalNAc-Conjugated Hepatic-Target siRNA Portfolio Across TMPRSS6, Complement Component 3 (SLN-124/SLN-501), and Other Hepatic Targets

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SLN) closed its upsized $175 million underwritten public offering of American Depositary Shares (ADSs) following the August 10, 2026 Phase 2 SANRECO trial win in polycythemia vera. Trial anchor: divesiran achieved 88% response versus 19% on placebo (P<0.0001, 69% placebo-adjusted response rate) in 48 phlebotomy-dependent patients over 36 weeks. Offering mechanics: priced August 11 at $13.50 per ADS for 12,962,963 ADSs. The underwriters (Jefferies, Morgan Stanley, Cantor Fitzgerald, and William Blair as joint book-running managers) fully exercised their 30-day overallotment option for an additional 1,944,444 ADSs, bringing the total offering to 14,907,407 ADSs and gross proceeds to approximately $175 million. The financing provides the capital to advance divesiran into Phase 3 (planned initiation H1 2027) plus broader pipeline progression including the GalNAc-conjugated hepatic-target siRNA portfolio across TMPRSS6, complement component 3 (SLN-124/SLN-501), and other hepatic and extrahepatic targets. Divesiran has FDA Fast Track and Orphan Drug designations for polycythemia vera; the transferable-voucher secondary market and the recently completed Arrowhead $215 million Priority Review Voucher purchase provide comparable references for the broader siRNA regulatory-instrument landscape.

Clinical Trials · View digest

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SLN) Announced Positive Topline Results From the Phase 2 SANRECO Trial of Divesiran, a First-in-Class TMPRSS6-Targeting siRNA That Increases Hepcidin Production to Restrict Iron Availability to Bone Marrow and Reduce Excessive Red Blood Cell Production in Polycythemia Vera (PV); Trial Enrolled 48 Phlebotomy-Dependent PV Patients With Divesiran 6 mg/kg Administered Subcutaneously Every 6 Weeks or Every 12 Weeks; 88% of Divesiran-Treated Patients Achieved a Response Versus 19% on Placebo (P<0.0001), Corresponding to a 69% Placebo-Adjusted Response Rate; Divesiran Has FDA Fast Track and Orphan Drug Designations for PV; Company Anticipates Initiating a Phase 3 Trial Evaluating Divesiran Every 12 Weeks Versus Placebo in H1 2027 Extending the Broader siRNA Cardiometabolic and Rare-Disease Franchise Landscape That Also Includes Alnylam's Amvuttra and Arrowhead's Redemplo (Plozasiran)

Silence Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SLN) announced positive topline results from the Phase 2 SANRECO trial of divesiran, a first-in-class TMPRSS6-targeting siRNA product candidate developed from the company's proprietary mRNAi GOLD platform. The trial enrolled 48 phlebotomy-dependent adults with polycythemia vera (PV) and evaluated divesiran 6 mg/kg administered subcutaneously every 6 weeks (Q6W) or every 12 weeks (Q12W) versus placebo over a 36-week randomized double-blind period. Results: 88% of divesiran-treated patients achieved a response versus 19% on placebo (P<0.0001), corresponding to a 69% placebo-adjusted response rate. How divesiran works: it silences TMPRSS6 (transmembrane serine protease 6) expressed almost exclusively in the liver; TMPRSS6 is a negative regulator of hepcidin, the body's master regulator of iron metabolism. By silencing TMPRSS6, divesiran increases hepcidin production and release by liver hepatocytes, which restricts iron availability to bone marrow and reduces the excessive red blood cell production that drives PV symptoms. Divesiran has FDA Fast Track and Orphan Drug designations for PV. Silence Therapeutics anticipates initiating a Phase 3 trial evaluating divesiran Q12W versus placebo in the first half of 2027. Shares rose sharply on the news, touching a 52-week high. The read-through extends the broader siRNA cardiometabolic and rare-disease franchise landscape that also includes Alnylam's Amvuttra and Arrowhead's Redemplo (plozasiran) in adjacent hepatic-target siRNA categories.

Clinical Trials · View digest

Protagonist and Takeda Bring Phase 3 VERIFY and Long-Term Rusfertide Data to EHA 2026 in Stockholm Through June 14

Protagonist Therapeutics (Nasdaq: PTGX) and Takeda are presenting four rusfertide abstracts at the 2026 European Hematology Association Congress in Stockholm (June 11-14), including analyses from the Phase 3 VERIFY study and long-term results from the Phase 2 REVIVE and THRIVE open-label extensions. The 32-week VERIFY primary analysis showed 76.9% of patients on rusfertide achieved a clinical response versus 32.9% on placebo; the 52-week dataset met the primary endpoint and all four key secondary endpoints. Rusfertide is a first-in-class subcutaneous hepcidin-mimetic peptide for polycythemia vera. The FDA accepted the rusfertide NDA in early 2026 with priority review and set a Q3 2026 PDUFA target action date.