Targeted pill that blocks an immune-cell enzyme to ease Crohn's disease
Official title: Development of a Novel, Targeted Small Molecule Inhibitor of the Nucleoside Salvage Pathway to Treat Crohn's disease
Funded at Trethera Corporation · NIH-11250446 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work is developing a new pill called TRE-515 that blocks an enzyme in immune cells to lower gut inflammation in people with Crohn's disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Trethera Corporation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Sherman Oaks, United States) |
| Project start | September 18, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $905,290 |
| NIH project number | 2R42DK138578-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11250446 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with active moderate-to-severe Crohn's disease, especially those who have not responded to or cannot tolerate current therapies, would be the most likely candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People whose Crohn's is well controlled, whose disease is driven by non-lymphocyte factors, or groups typically excluded from early trials (for example children or pregnant people) may not receive benefit.
What this research studies
If you join this work, you would be offered TRE-515, a small oral drug that blocks deoxycytidine kinase (dCK), an enzyme that helps immune cells multiply during inflammation. By slowing immune cell growth, the drug aims to reduce the immune attack on the gut that causes Crohn's symptoms like pain, diarrhea, and weight loss. Researchers can use PET scans with special tracers to measure dCK activity in lymphoid tissues, and TRE-515 is already being tested in early human trials for cancer. The project combines lab studies, imaging, and early clinical testing to see whether targeting this pathway is safe and helpful for people with Crohn's disease.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could lower gut inflammation and symptoms with a more targeted action and possibly fewer systemic side effects than some existing treatments.
How similar studies have gone: Targeting immune-cell metabolism has shown promise in preclinical autoimmune models and TRE-515 is novel and already in Phase 1 cancer trials, but clinical proof of benefit in Crohn's disease is still limited.
Where this research is happening
-
Trethera Corporation
Sherman Oaks, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Schultz, Kenneth — Trethera Corporation
- Study coordinator: Schultz, Kenneth
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.