On August 9, 2023 Scholar Rock (NASDAQ: SRRK), a Phase 3 clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of serious diseases in which protein growth factors play a fundamental role, reported financial results and corporate updates for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023 (Press release, Scholar Rock, AUG 9, 2023, View Source [SID1234634091]).

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"We continue to advance our apitegromab program, notably with the recent presentation of 36-month data from the Phase 2 TOPAZ trial which supports apitegromab’s therapeutic potential to meaningfully improve motor function for patients with SMA," said Jay Backstrom, M.D., M.P.H., President and Chief Executive Officer of Scholar Rock. "The continued success of TOPAZ increases our conviction in SAPPHIRE and we look forward to completing enrollment this quarter and sharing a topline data readout in 2024."

Recent Company Highlights and Upcoming Milestones

Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Program

Apitegromab is an investigational fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits myostatin activation by selectively binding the pro- and latent forms of myostatin in skeletal muscle and is being developed as a potential first muscle-targeted therapy for the treatment of SMA.

Presented 36-month extension data from Phase 2 TOPAZ trial at Cure SMA Research & Clinical Care Meeting in June. The company shared new data evaluating outcomes after 36 months of treatment with apitegromab, which showed substantial and sustained improvement in motor function, as well as improvements in patient-reported outcome measures in patients with nonambulatory Types 2 and 3 SMA receiving survival motor neuron (SMN) therapy. The company also hosted a virtual investor day event in July featuring key opinion leaders to discuss the current SMA treatment landscape and apitegromab’s potential to advance the standard of care.
Continued progress towards completion of enrollment for Phase 3 SAPPHIRE clinical trial. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of apitegromab in patients with nonambulatory Types 2 and 3 SMA receiving either nusinersen or risdiplam is actively enrolling SMA patients across sites in the U.S. and Europe. Enrollment completion is expected in the third quarter of 2023, with top-line data expected in 2024. If successful and if approved, the company expects to initiate a commercial product launch in 2025.
Initiated the ONYX trial, the long-term extension study for patients from both the TOPAZ and SAPPHIRE studies. As of July 2023, more than 90 percent of patients from TOPAZ receiving apitegromab and a SMN therapy remained in the extension study.
Immuno-Oncology Program

SRK-181 is an investigational selective inhibitor of latent TGFβ1 activation and is being developed with the aim of overcoming resistance to checkpoint therapy in patients with advanced cancer.

Advancing Phase 1 DRAGON proof-of-concept trial. DRAGON is evaluating SRK-181 in patients with locally advanced or metastatic solid tumors that exhibit resistance to anti-PD-(L)1 antibodies. The Company will provide biomarker and clinical updates from Part B of the DRAGON trial in the second half of 2023.
Second Quarter 2023 Financial Results

For the quarter ended June 30, 2023, net loss was $37.9 million compared to a net loss of $44.0 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2022.

The Company did not record any revenue for either the quarter ended June 30, 2023 or June 30, 2022.
Research and development expense was $26.9 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2023, compared to $32.1 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2022. The decrease was primarily attributable to a decrease in external research and development costs, including costs for the apitegromab clinical trials and associated clinical trial material manufacturing costs. In addition, there was a decrease in employee compensation and benefits costs, resulting from the restructuring in May 2022.
General and administrative expense was $12.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2023, compared to $11.1 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2022.
As of June 30, 2023, Scholar Rock had cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities of approximately $249 million, which is expected to fund the company’s anticipated operating and capital expenditure requirements into 2025.
"We are relentlessly focused on execution, and we are encouraged by the continued strong data from TOPAZ and momentum we’re seeing in the enrollment of SAPPHIRE. Our overall execution, along with our spend for the first six months of 2023, is aligned with our strategic plan," said Ted Myles, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Scholar Rock. "We ended the quarter with $249 million in cash, which we expect to provide runway through a number of anticipated important milestones."