Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an inherited metabolic disease that manifests at birth and is marked by an inability to break down Phe, an amino acid that is commonly found in many foods. Left untreated, high levels of Phe become toxic and can lead to serious neurological and neuropsychological problems affecting the way a person thinks, feels, and acts. Due to the seriousness of these symptoms, infants are screened at birth in many countries to ensure early diagnosis and treatment to avoid intellectual disability and other complications. To date, Synlogic has determined that SYNB1618 can effectively break down phenylalanine in the GI tract of both healthy volunteers and patients. Now, Synlogic has initiated a Phase 2 study in PKU patients called SynPheny-1 (NCT04534842) to see if SYNB1618 can decrease Phe levels in the blood. More information can be found at www.pkuresearchstudy.com.

Enteric Hyperoxaluria is an acquired metabolic disorder caused by increased absorption of dietary oxalate, which is present in many healthy foods, making it almost impossible to control with diet alone. Enteric Hyperoxaluria often occurs as a result of a primary insult to the bowel, such as inflammatory bowel disease, short bowel syndrome, or as a result of surgical procedures such as Roux-en-Y bariatric weight-loss surgery. Enteric Hyperoxaluria results in dangerously high levels of urinary oxalate, which causes progressive kidney damage, kidney stone formation, and nephrocalcinosis. There are no approved treatment options. To date, Synlogic has demonstrated that SYNB8802 has achieved proof of mechanism in healthy volunteers during Part A of the study. Now, Synlogic has initiated Part B of the study in patients with Enteric Hyperoxaluria following Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery. More information can be found at www.clinicaltrials.gov.

Cancer cells are known for their ability to evade the body’s immune system, allowing them to persist, proliferate and metastasize. Synlogic is designing Synthetic Biotic medicines that work to combat the tumor’s ability to evade the immune system, boosting a patient’s immune response and promoting the body’s ability to detect and destroy cancer cells. Synlogic has advanced its first clinical candidate in cancer, SYNB1891, into a Phase 1 clinical trial in patients with advanced solid tumors and lymphoma. More information can be found at www.clinicaltrials.gov. SYNB1891 is designed to activate the STING pathway specifically in antigen presenting cells that naturally sense and engulf bacteria. This results in local ablation of cancer cells as well as targeting metastases that spread throughout the body.

Synlogic is also developing novel Synthetic Biotic medicines to treat inflammatory bowel disease.

Synlogic is evaluating its Synthetic Biotic platform for the development of vaccines with differentiated clinical profiles.