Update on SRA737

Cambridge, UK, 31 December 2024 - Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), a biotechnology company developing next generation kinase inhibitors for autoimmune disease and cancer, today provides an update on the status of SRA737.

SRA737 is a clinical-stage oral, selective Checkpoint kinase 1 inhibitor that targets cancer cell replication and DNA damage repair mechanisms. It was discovered and initially developed by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research in collaboration with Sareum, with funding from Sareum and Cancer Research UK. In January 2024, Sareum announced that its co-development partner the CRT Pioneer Fund ("CPF"), had entered into a development and commercialisation license for SRA737 with a private biopharma company in the US.

Sareum has been notified by CPF that it received notice of termination of the SRA737 licence from the US-based licensee on 26 December 2024. The notice period runs for 90 days and Sareum will meet the team from CPF to discuss what steps, if any, are appropriate to seek an alternative licensee once the asset has returned to CPF on 27th March 2025.

Stephen Parker, Executive Chairman of Sareum, commented: "Although clearly disappointed by this outcome, Sareum is now fully focused on its pipeline of TYK2/JAK1 inhibitors and our priority is to drive our lead programme, SDC-1801, towards Phase 2 development."

CPF acquired worldwide commercial rights to the programme in 2013 as part of a co-development agreement with Sareum. SRA737 was licensed by CPF to Sierra Oncology in September 2016. Sierra progressed SRA737 through Phase 1/2 clinical development and, at the 2019 ASCO Annual meeting, reported positive preliminary efficacy and safety data from two clinical trials evaluating SRA737 as a monotherapy and in combination with chemotherapy. Sierra did not progress the asset beyond the Phase 1/2 clinical trial and was acquired by GSK in 2022, with rights returned to CPF in January 2023.