aTyr Pharma Announces New tRNA Synthetase Discovery Programs

Advancement of selected AARS and DARS fragments primarily targeting cancer

Programs will accelerate discoveries initially focusing on natural killer (NK) cell biology

SAN DIEGO , Feb. 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- aTyr Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LIFE), a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on novel biological pathways, today announced that it has initiated two new discovery programs from its tRNA synthetase platform. These programs will investigate the functionality of selected fragments of Alanyl-tRNA Synthetase (AARS) and Aspartyl-tRNA Synthetase (DARS) in immunology, fibrosis and cancer. The announcement comes after the company published a at the 2021 Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening Digital International Conference and Exhibition (SLAS) demonstrating that these extracellular tRNA synthetase fragments bind to innate and adaptive immune cells, including natural killer (NK) cells.

“We are pleased to initiate these discovery programs, which build on our proprietary biology platform and add to our developing pipeline in immunology, fibrosis and oncology,” said Sanjay S. Shukla, M.D., M.S., President and Chief Executive Officer of aTyr. “We continue to leverage our broad intellectual property portfolio covering tRNA synthetases and their related signaling pathways to translate this underexplored area of biology into potential first-in-class therapies for diseases with high unmet need.”

Initial research will primarily focus on further elucidating the effects of these fragments on NK cell biology in cancer. NK cells play an important role in innate immune responses and may be an important therapeutic target in oncology. The discovery programs will utilize the company’s novel approach to identifying target receptors for tRNA synthetase fragments to help characterize the mechanism of action of these proteins.

“These transformative findings, which received an enthusiastic response at SLAS in our poster presentation, highlight the important pathways that extracellular tRNA synthetase fragments interact with, including NK cells. The research approach was similar to the process by which we identified Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) as the target receptor for the HARS fragment that forms the active component of our lead tRNA synthetase derived drug candidate, ATYR1923. This finding has led to advances in our understanding of ATYR1923 and to the development of our panel of selective anti-NRP2 antibodies, including ATYR2810. We look forward to further characterizing AARS and DARS binding targets to help support and guide future drug development,” said Dr. Shukla.

About aTyr

aTyr is a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on novel biological pathways. aTyr’s research and development efforts are concentrated on a newly discovered area of biology, the extracellular functionality and signaling pathways of tRNA synthetases. aTyr has built a global intellectual property estate directed to a potential pipeline of protein compositions derived from 20 tRNA synthetase genes and their extracellular targets. aTyr’s primary focus is ATYR1923, a clinical-stage product candidate which binds to the Neuropilin-2 receptor and is designed to down-regulate immune engagement in inflammatory lung diseases. For more information, please visit .

Forward-Looking Statements

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Ashlee Dunston

Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications