A Revolution in Immunology: Creating New Possibilities with Oral Medicines
Like many physicians, my entire career has been driven by a singular purpose: making a meaningful impact on patients’ lives. I’ve carried that mission with me as a clinical leader in biopharma, where I’ve had the privilege of contributing to the development of transformative medicines for chronic and debilitating immuno-inflammatory diseases like SKYRIZI®, HUMIRA®, RINVOQ®, and DUPIXENT®. Early on, I realized the critical need to advocate for patients, especially in the face of limited treatment options. For years, the challenges far outweighed the solutions in our therapeutic toolkit. Even today, barriers like efficacy gaps, safety concerns, and injectable administration limit the reach of existing therapies.
At Kymera, I saw an extraordinary opportunity to redefine what’s possible for immunological diseases. The prospect of delivering paradigm shifting, safe, and effective oral therapies inspired me to join a team committed to changing the landscape of treatment. Kymera’s pioneering approach pushes boundaries to test new possibilities and has advanced drug candidates into the clinic that target the root causes of highly morbid—and often life-threatening—conditions. Together, we’re building a future where patients have access to convenient and innovative therapies that can truly transform their lives.
Immunology Therapies Through a New Lens
At Kymera, we are advancing a groundbreaking drug modality: targeted protein degradation (TPD). This innovative approach allows us to address previously undrugged disease-causing proteins and overcome the inherent limitations of traditional therapeutic modalities. This novel technology offers hope for conditions once thought untreatable or where most current treatments really only address symptoms rather than the underlying disease pathology. By leveraging TPD, Kymera is unlocking new possibilities for long-sought disease targets—such as STAT6—that have historically been beyond the reach of conventional drug discovery efforts, until now.
Learn more about STAT6 in our CEO’s latest blog post
Pioneering new drug modalities requires more than innovation—it demands a bold mindset and a willingness to challenge convention and do things differently. From the start, it was clear to me that Kymera embodies this ethos, driven by the determination to tackle the “high-hanging fruit” of drug discovery. The aspiration to develop a first-in-class therapy against a previously undrugged target requires vision—seeing beyond the immediate line of sight, anticipating challenges, and approaching problems from entirely new perspectives. It’s a mindset that embraces boldness, ambition, and the relentless pursuit of transformative solutions. I was inspired to join this mission, leveraging my understanding of the patient experience in immunology to contribute to breakthroughs that redefine what’s possible in this therapeutic area.
Industry Leading Innovation
Our more advanced immunology program KT-474, an oral IRAK4 degrader and the first clinical TPD program in immunology, provided critical lessons that have shaped Kymera’s unique approach to immunological drug discovery. Early in the program’s development, we focused on understanding and optimizing degradation profiles across diverse immune cell types and tissues—insights that have become a cornerstone of Kymera’s scientific approach and a key differentiator from other companies in the space. Now in two Phase 2 trials, this program stands as a testament to our strategy for target selection and clinical development, pursuing targets where TPD is the best or only solution, and it sets a high standard for what we aspire to achieve with our STAT6 program.
We are building on this expertise to create the next generation of safe, effective, oral small molecule medicines that transform treatment options in immunology.
STAT6: A New Possibility for Oral Medicines in Immunology
We are thrilled to have progressed KT-621, our first-in-industry oral STAT6 degrader, into Phase 1 clinical testing. With KT-621, our goal is clear: deliver the biologics-like efficacy of a mega blockbuster treatment like dupilumab for allergic and atopic diseases, but in the convenience of a pill. Our preclinical data strongly supports this aspiration, which would be a significant step forward for patients.
In our preclinical work, KT-621 has shown remarkable selectivity for STAT6 over other STAT proteins and effectively blocked IL-4 and IL-13—critical drivers of allergic inflammation—with picomolar potency in human Th2 cell assays, performing at or above the level of dupilumab. Additionally, KT-621 demonstrated dupilumab-like activity across multiple preclinical models of Th2-driven diseases, with excellent tolerability. These results give us confidence that KT-621 has the potential to overcome existing barriers and provide a novel oral treatment for patients.
Check out our KT-621 poster presentations
The preclinical characterization of KT-621 showcases the incredible work of our discovery team, advancing the STAT6 program at an accelerated pace to address the urgent need for new treatment options. Our development team has been equally focused, crafting clinical strategies and collaborating with seasoned clinicians and experts to maximize the program’s potential beginning with planned studies in atopic dermatitis and asthma. We are rapidly progressing the development of KT-621, and will have Phase 1 data, in healthy volunteers and atopic dermatitis patients, as well as initiate the first Phase 2b study, all this year.
I’m incredibly energized by this next phase of possibility for KT-621 and the broader promise of all our immunology programs. Each represents a true pipeline-in-a-product opportunity, with the potential to transform treatment paradigms and bring game-changing options to patients who need them now.
Join us as we work to revolutionize immunology!
Arsalan
Arsalan Shabbir, MD, PhD,
Vice President, Clinical Development
Kymera Therapeutics