Bitterroot: applying CD47 biology to cardiovascular disease

Seven years after Stanford researchers including Irving Weissman described a connection between CD47 biology and atherosclerotic disease, Bitterroot has emerged from stealth with $145 million in funding and a clinical development plan designed to drastically reduce the burden of cardiovascular outcomes studies.

Weissman is among four co-founders of Bitterroot Bio Inc., which is aiming to start clinical studies in 1H24 of BRB-002, which targets the CD47/SIRPA pathway to treat atherosclerosis. He and co-founder Nick Leeper were co-authors of a 2016 paper in Nature outlining the role of CD47 upregulation in atherogenesis, and the use of a CD47 inhibitor to clear accumulated diseased tissue and reverse atherosclerosis in a mouse model...