Seal Rock Therapeutics

What Seal Rock Therapeutics does

Seal Rock Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in Seattle, WA that develops small-molecule kinase inhibitors for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases of the liver and central nervous system. The company's drug discovery platform integrates computational chemistry with medicinal chemistry expertise and has produced a proprietary library of over 400 unique compounds across multiple chemical series, with associated structure-activity relationship data informing candidate selection. Its pipeline consists of two core assets: SRT-015, a second-generation liver-selective ASK1 inhibitor with a trimodal antifibrotic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic mechanism that completed a Phase 1 trial in healthy volunteers (NCT04887038) and is being developed for NASH, alcoholic hepatitis, cholestatic liver diseases, and acute-on-chronic liver failure; and SRT-055 (also referred to as LASC inhibitor), a first-in-class CNS-penetrant dual LRRK2/ASK1 inhibitor aimed at Parkinson's disease and ALS.

Seal Rock is pre-revenue and monetizes primarily through out-licensing and non-dilutive grant funding. In May 2023 the company out-licensed injectable formulation rights of SRT-015 for ACLF to GENFIT in a deal worth up to €100 million in regulatory, clinical, and commercial milestones plus tiered royalties. Non-dilutive capital has come from a $358,000 NIH SBIR grant for alcoholic hepatitis and a $547,000 USAMRAA grant for ALS research. The company is currently raising a Series A to fund Phase 2-readiness activities for SRT-015. Scientific and clinical guidance is provided by an advisory board that includes NASH, hepatology, and neurodegeneration key opinion leaders such as Rohit Loomba, Scott Friedman, Vijay Shah, Timothy Greenamyre, and Bob Brown.

The company's intellectual property position rests on an international PCT patent application covering SRT-015 and other ASK1 inhibitors across 151 countries, with potential orphan indications in pediatric cholestatic diseases providing additional regulatory buffers. Future commercial revenue is anticipated from FDA-approved pharmaceutical products, likely delivered via additional licensing or co-development partnerships rather than direct sales.

Name

Seal Rock Therapeutics

Legal name

Seal Rock Therapeutics, Inc.

Website

https://sealrocktx.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical-stage Biotechnology

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

Drug Discovery (Target ID/Validation & Hit Discovery) (HLAIALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cheminformatics & Molecular Modeling / CADD (HLAGAJAE), Neurology & CNS Specialty Pharmaceuticals (HLAIACAC)

Keywords

• Kinase inhibitor therapeutics
• Clinical-stage biotechnology
• Small molecule drug development
• Liver disease therapeutics
• Neurodegenerative therapeutics

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Licensing and Milestone Payments: Out-licensing agreements for development and commercialization of pipeline assets. Received payments up to €100 million including regulatory, clinical, and commercial milestone payments, plus tiered royalties from GENFIT for injectable formulation of SRT-015 for ACLF.
2. Government Research Grants: Non-dilutive funding from government sources including NIH SBIR grant ($358,000) for alcoholic hepatitis research and USAMRAA grant ($547,000) for ALS research.
3. Future Product Revenue: Pre-revenue clinical stage company with no current commercial products. Anticipated future revenue from FDA-approved pharmaceutical products.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Seal Rock Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing proprietary small molecule kinase inhibitors for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases with high unmet medical need. Its pipeline includes SRT-015, a second-generation liver-selective ASK1 inhibitor in clinical development for NASH, alcoholic hepatitis, cholestatic liver diseases, and ACLF (with the injectable ACLF formulation out-licensed to GENFIT), and SRT-055, a first-in-class CNS-penetrant dual LRRK2/ASK1 (LASC) inhibitor series targeting Parkinson's disease and ALS. The company supports these programs with an internal drug discovery platform comprising over 400 unique kinase inhibitor compounds across multiple chemical series.

Product overview

Seal Rock Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing first-in-class and best-in-class kinase inhibitors for diseases with high unmet medical need. The company's portfolio consists of two core product candidates: SRT-015, a second-generation liver-selective ASK1 inhibitor currently in clinical development for liver diseases including NASH and alcoholic hepatitis (out-licensed to GENFIT for ACLF injectable formulation); and SRT-055, a first-in-class CNS-penetrant dual LRRK2/ASK1 inhibitor (LASC inhibitor) for neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's disease and ALS. The company operates a robust drug discovery platform with over 400 unique kinase inhibitor compounds across multiple chemical series.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SRT-015 Second-generation liver-selective inhibitor of Apoptosis Signal-regulating Kinase 1 (ASK1) developed for the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), alcoholic hepatitis, cholestatic liver diseases, and Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure (ACLF). SRT-015 has a trimodal therapeutic mechanism with demonstrated direct antifibrotic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic activities, and has completed Phase 1 clinical trials in healthy volunteers (NCT04887038) demonstrating therapeutically relevant exposure with excellent safety and tolerability.
• SRT-055 First-in-class CNS-penetrant dual LRRK2/ASK1 inhibitor series (also referred to as LASC — LRRK2/ASK1 Signaling Complex — inhibitors) designed to treat diseases of the central nervous system, including Parkinson's disease and ALS. Dual inhibition of LRRK2/ASK1 provides greater efficacy than LRRK2 inhibitors alone and eliminates kidney and lung toxicity exhibited by many LRRK2 inhibitors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Statistically significant reduction in liver fibrosis, steatosis, and inflammation in DIO-NASH Gubra mouse model
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 August 2025Joined MJFF's LRRK2 Investigative Therapeutics Exchange (LITE) program to advance first-in-class LRRK2/ASK1 signaling complex (LASC) inhibitors for Parkinson's disease. LITE program supports development of new therapies with preclinical and clinical resources, connecting companies with pharma and biotech opinion leaders. Program governed by steering committee of MJFF staff and field leaders, implemented by University of Dundee, with collaboration from ASAP-supported programs including CRN, PPMI, and GP2.
• GENFITcoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 31 May 2023Out-licensing agreement for development of injectable formulation of SRT-015 for acute liver disease including Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure (ACLF). Seal Rock eligible to receive payments up to €100 million including regulatory, clinical, and commercial milestone payments, plus tiered royalties. GENFIT developing injectable formulation while Seal Rock continues oral formulation development for alcoholic hepatitis and NASH.
• Rohit Loomba (UC San Diego)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific advisor providing clinical and scientific guidance. Dr. Loomba is a leading expert in translational research and clinical trial design in NASH and NAFLD, and principal investigator for Gilead's ASK1 inhibitor program.
• Scott Friedman (Mount Sinai)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical/Scientific advisor. Dr. Friedman is a pioneering researcher in liver disease fibrosis and Chief of Division of Liver Diseases at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
• Vijay Shah (Mayo Clinic)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical/Scientific advisor. Dr. Shah is Carol Gatton Professor and Chair of Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester.
• Timothy Greenamyre (University of Pittsburgh)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific advisor. Dr. Greenamyre is Love Family Professor, Vice-Chair of Neurology, and Director of Pittsburgh Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases.
• Bob Brown (UMass Chan Medical School)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical/Scientific advisor. Dr. Brown is Professor of Neurology and LaChance Chair in Medical Research at UMass Chan Medical School.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Gilead Sciences: Developer of selonsertib, the first-generation ASK1 inhibitor that failed in Phase 3 NASH trials. Most direct mechanistic comparator and validates (and simultaneously complicates) Seal Rock's ASK1 thesis across NASH and ACLF.
• AbbVie: Acquired Akarna Therapeutics (Seal Rock CSO's prior company) for $50M + up to $1B in milestones and operates a major NASH and Parkinson's R&D footprint. Most plausible large-pharma acquirer or partner for Seal Rock assets.

Direct peers

• Madrigal Pharmaceuticals: Developer of resmetirom (Rezdiffra), the first FDA-approved NASH therapy. Closest comparable in NASH clinical development and now sets the regulatory and commercial benchmark that Seal Rock's SRT-015 must beat or complement.
• Denali Therapeutics: Lead developer of LRRK2 small-molecule inhibitors for Parkinson's disease (e.g., BIIB122 with Biogen). The most relevant CNS-side peer for Seal Rock's SRT-055/LASC program given shared LRRK2 target and indication.
• Metacrine: Clinical-stage NASH biotech where Seal Rock's CEO Neil McDonnell was previously CEO. Highly comparable in mission, stage and therapeutic focus, and an informative prior comparable for Seal Rock's eventual trajectory.
• Terns Pharmaceuticals: Clinical-stage biotech with a pipeline of small-molecule candidates for NASH and obesity, including an FXR agonist and THR-β agonist. Closely comparable in modality (oral small molecules), indication (NASH) and stage.
• Viking Therapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing oral and subcutaneous therapeutics for metabolic and liver diseases, including NASH candidates. Comparable in size, stage and therapeutic-area focus to Seal Rock.
• Galmed Pharmaceuticals: Clinical-stage biotech focused on liver diseases including NASH and fibrosis (aramchol). Comparable small-cap, liver-focused clinical developer with similar indication breadth to Seal Rock's SRT-015 program.
• Cerevel Therapeutics: CNS-focused biotech with LRRK2 programs for Parkinson's disease (acquired by AbbVie in 2024). Direct CNS indication comparator for Seal Rock's SRT-055 program and a relevant data point for LRRK2 partnering economics.

Emerging players

• Akarna Therapeutics: Preclinical NASH startup acquired by Allergan in 2016 for $50M upfront plus up to $1B in milestones; Seal Rock CSO Artur Plonowski was Director of Pharmacology. Closest historical precedent for the Seal Rock team translating a NASH asset into a high-value pharma deal.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors2 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Seal Rock Therapeutics