OrbiMed’s decision to lead a $50 million Series C for Accro Bioscience signals a bet that the company’s ‘Cell Death-Inflammation’ platform can produce differentiated molecules in crowded immunology markets. The investment comes as Accro’s pipeline matures: its RIPK inhibitor AC-201 has completed a Phase II in psoriasis and is partnered with Fosun Pharma for Greater China, while its TYK2/JAK1 dual inhibitor AC-101 is poised for a global Phase II in ulcerative colitis after receiving FDA clearance for a multiregional clinical trial.
Pipeline at a glance
Accro’s lead asset, AC-201, targets receptor-interacting protein kinase (RIPK), a key mediator in necroptosis and inflammation. In a completed Phase II trial for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in China, the drug generated data that helped secure a regional partnership with Fosun. Meanwhile, AC-101, a dual inhibitor of TYK2 and JAK1, is enrolling a Phase Ib in ulcerative colitis and has been cleared by the FDA to initiate a pivotal-stage MRCT. A third program, AC-003, has FDA orphan drug designation for acute graft-versus-host disease and is in Phase Ib.
The RIPK1 field has seen setbacks—Denali Therapeutics’ molecule failed a Phase II ALS trial, and Sanofi’s program was deprioritized—but a Chinese psoriasis win could hint at a viable path. On the TYK2/JAK1 front, Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu (deucravacitinib) validated the mechanism in psoriasis, and Accro hopes to differentiate with a dual inhibition approach. The ulcerative colitis indication, where JAK inhibitors carry class-wide safety warnings, will require strong selectivity data.
With the Series C, Accro plans to push AC-101 into a global Phase II and expand its pipeline of first-in-class/best-in-class assets. The OrbiMed-led round underscores a continuing appetite for preclinical and early clinical programs in China that can be taken multinational. For a company rooted in a single-country Phase II, crossing into an FDA-regulated MRCT marks a pivotal test of its science and ambition.
