Sitryx adds another BigPharma and partners with Boehringer Ingelheim in autoimmune push

Under the deal, the German group will receive an exclusive worldwide licence to a preclinical asset, while Sitryx could earn more than $500 million in upfront and milestone payments, plus potential royalties on future sales. Financial details were not disclosed.

At the heart of the collaboration is an oral small-molecule inhibitor designed to modulate disease-relevant immune cells via immunometabolic mechanisms. For Sitryx, the agreement represents further validation of its approach of targeting metabolic pathways within immune cells to achieve more precise immune modulation. Boehringer, meanwhile, is seeking to broaden its autoimmune pipeline with differentiated, orally available therapies.

Many came knocking at the doors of Sitryx

Founded in Oxford in 2018 with locations in The Oxford Science Park and New Jersey, NJ (USA), Sitryx has built a pipeline centred on immunometabolism. Its investors have included GSK and SV Health Investors. In 2020, Eli Lilly secured rights to up to four autoimmune programmes, though it returned the most advanced candidate, the itaconate mimetic SYX-1042, in 2025 for strategic reasons. SYX-1042 has completed Phase I development. Other assets include the PKM2 modulator SYX-5219 for atopic dermatitis, as well as preclinical programmes targeting allergic asthma (GLS1 inhibitor) and ulcerative colitis (SIK2 inhibitor).

For Boehringer, the transaction fits into a period of intensified business development in immunology and adjacent indications. The company recently signed sizeable “biobucks” agreements, including partnerships around a bispecific antibody for inflammatory bowel disease and a collaboration in kidney disorders.

Boehringer’s expanding position in immunology

Boehringer’s own clinical immunology portfolio already features several programmes, among them the sGC activator avenciguat for systemic sclerosis and a TREM-1 antagonist in development for ulcerative colitis. The company also maintains an established presence in respiratory and fibrotic diseases.

In a competitive market dominated by large players such as AbbVie, Johnson & Johnson and Novartis — many of which focus on biologics and injectable therapies — an orally administered small-molecule approach could offer meaningful differentiation, particularly in chronic conditions where convenience and long-term adherence are critical.

Carine Boustany, Head of Immunology and Respiratory Research at Boehringer, described autoimmune and inflammatory diseases as areas of “significant unmet need”, adding that the Sitryx programme brings a promising new mechanism aligned with the company’s ambition to advance potential first-in-class therapies.

For Sitryx, the partnership underscores growing external confidence in its immunometabolic platform and positions the UK biotech at the centre of efforts to develop next-generation, mechanism-driven treatments in autoimmune disease.