Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., said it started STRONG-SCD, a phase II trial evaluating once-daily IW-1701, an orally administered soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) stimulator, in patients with sickle cell disease. IW-1701 has been shown to improve nitric oxide signaling in nonclinical studies, and is being investigated for its potential to treat multiple aspects of sickle cell disease pathophysiology, including red blood cell sickling, decreased blood flow and vascular inflammation.