With a promising IL-36 inhibitor for atopic dermatitis (AD, or eczema) at the phase II stage, Turn Therapeutics Inc. has gained $75 million in post-public commitments and meanwhile is pursuing a grassroots strategy to keep the coffers in balance.

The sparsity of mid-to-late stage prospects in atopic dermatitis (AD, or eczema) – which has proved an especially challenging indication – plus some newsmaking fizzles in the space have caused developers to probe new targets with particular intensity. Most popular approaches thus far involve IL-4, IL-13, thymic stromal lymphopoietin and JAK. Developers have stumbled for varying reasons such as high placebo response rates, safety or lack of clinical proof of concept. Among the potential AD rescuers is Nektar Therapeutics Inc. with rezpegaldesleukin (rezpeg), which takes aim at IL-2.

Resvita Bio Inc.’s RVB-003 has been awarded orphan drug designation by the FDA for the skin disorder Netherton syndrome. RVB-003 was previously granted rare pediatric disease designation.

At this week’s American Chemical Society Spring meeting, Galderma SA reported the discovery of novel, oral and selective macrocyclic inhibitors of protein kinase C θ (PKCθ) for the potential treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) and psoriasis.

Researchers from Anew Therapeutics Pte Ltd. recently detailed the discovery of novel oral IL-17A small-molecule inhibitors as candidates for the treatment of psoriasis.

Domain Therapeutics SA has nominated PAR2 antagonist DT-9046 as a drug candidate with potential to treat various inflammatory diseases, including atopic dermatitis, inflammatory bowel disease and arthritis, as well as neuroinflammatory conditions such as migraine.

New Zealand med-tech startup Avasa Ltd. has developed an arterial coupler that could save surgeons 30 minutes in the operating room to better connect arteries.