- ERAPs (ERAP1 and ERAP2) are emerging therapeutic targets associated with multiple autoimmune diseases.
- Genomics will assemble the largest available genetic resource to evaluate how ERAP variants influence an individual's risk of developing multiple autoimmune diseases.
- Insights will be used to strengthen Greywolf Therapeutics' autoimmune disease pipeline.
OXFORD, England, April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Genomics, a science-led techbio company using large-scale genetic information to accelerate drug discovery and development and develop innovative precision healthcare tools, today announced a strategic relationship with Greywolf Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company advancing novel antigen modulation treatments. Under the agreement, Genomics will curate and analyse large-scale genetic datasets to assess how variants of the ERAP (Endoplasmic Reticulum Aminopeptidases) enzymes influence disease risk across multiple autoimmune conditions.
Autoimmune diseases are a group of disorders in which the immune system mistakenly recognises the body's own proteins as foreign and attacks healthy tissue. They affect around 1 in 10 people, with numbers expected to increase over time. These conditions, which include type 1 diabetes and psoriatic arthritis, can significantly impact quality of life and place a significant burden on patients, causing chronic inflammation, tissue damage, and systemic dysfunction. Current treatments, which include anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive medications, typically focus on immune suppression and symptom management and may not achieve full disease control.
ERAP1 and ERAP2 are key cellular proteins involved in the processing and presentation of antigens - short segments of a protein, derived from the body's own cells or foreign material. The role of ERAP is to trim peptides, which are presented as antigens on the cell surface and recognised by T cells, a type of immune white blood cell. Genetic variations in ERAPs can alter this process and can result in autoimmunity - the activation of T cells, triggering an immune response on healthy tissue. These variants have been shown to increase susceptibility to a range of autoimmune diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriasis.
Using their proprietary tools, expertise and the world's largest harmonised interrogable genotype-phenotype data resource, Genomics will curate and analyse multiple independent genetic association studies with unmatched statistical power to identify genetic support linking specific ERAP variants with multiple autoimmune diseases and validate them as potential therapeutic targets. The insights will be used by Greywolf Therapeutics to guide the selection of indication opportunities.
"Current treatments for autoimmune diseases can be associated with side effects or variable responses, which may affect long-term disease management for some patients, underscoring the importance of continuing to investigate new therapeutic targets," said Professor Xenofon Baraliakos, Head of Rheumatology at the Rheumazentrum Ruhrgebiet, Herne, Germany. "Efforts to better understand shared genetic pathways, like ERAPs, across multiple autoimmune conditions may help advance future strategies aimed at addressing the underlying drivers of disease."
"We are delighted to be working with Greywolf Therapeutics to support the development of their disease pipeline using our unique datasets and scientific expertise, with the potential to address autoimmune diseases with high unmet need. During my time as Director of the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics at Oxford, I led large-scale genome-wide studies that helped pinpoint ERAP1 and ERAP2 as genes associated with autoimmune disease risk, providing the foundation for their use as potential therapeutic targets," said Professor Sir Peter Donnelly, CEO and Co-Founder of Genomics. "Through this relationship, we look forward to building on those insights to better understand where targeting these genes could have the biggest potential benefit to patients, helping them live longer, healthier lives."
"We believe our novel targets hold great promise for treating a number of autoimmune conditions, and our Phase 1 study in axial spondyloarthritis is just the start of delivering on that potential," said Peter Joyce, Co-founder & CEO of Greywolf Therapeutics. "Understanding the genetic drivers of these diseases is crucial to assessing which patient populations to initially focus on, and we look forward to using the insights from our partnership with Genomics to further strengthen and de-risk our pipeline."
To find out more about Genomics, visit genomics.com. To find out more about Greywolf Therapeutics, visit greywolftherapeutics.com.
About
Genomics is a science-led transatlantic TechBio combining large-scale genetic and health data with proprietary analytics to accelerate drug discovery and advance predictive, preventative healthcare. Spun out of the University of Oxford in 2014 by the world's top statistical and human geneticists, the company is built on a decade of world-class science and R&D. Our mission is to help people lead longer, healthier lives. Genomics has developed the world's largest harmonised genotype-phenotype data resource and built advanced AI-enabled tools and methods to harmonise and interpret genetic data at scale.
Today, we are collaborating with some of the world's leading healthcare organisations and helping them to predict, prevent, treat, and cure - dramatically reducing the human and financial cost of common diseases like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
The company was featured on the Sunday Times 100Tech as one of Britain's fastest growing private tech companies for the last two consecutive years, 2025 and 2026.
About Greywolf Therapeutics
Greywolf Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech company advancing novel antigen modulation treatments for cancer and autoimmune disorders.
The company's first-in-class small molecules are developed to control T cell activation by modulating antigen presentation, altering how cells appear to the immune system so it can recognize and target them correctly.
Greywolf's oncology treatment (GRWD5769) is delivering promising Phase 1/2 data in patients with solid tumors, demonstrating a strong safety and tolerability profile, as well as generating meaningful clinical activity. The company's autoimmunity treatment (GRWD0715) is progressing in a Phase 1/2 trial to treat the source of axial spondyloarthritis ahead of a planned expansion into other autoimmune indications.
Greywolf is headquartered in Oxford, UK.
About ERAP
ERAP (ERAP1 and ERAP2) are key proteins within the antigen processing and presenting pathway in cells. An antigen is a short segment of a protein, derived from either the body's own cells or foreign material. Detection of antigens that immune cells don't have tolerance towards can induce an immune response. The role of ERAP is to trim peptides, which are presented as antigens on the cell surface. Antigens presented in this way are recognised by T cells - a type of immune white blood cell - to allow the immune system to differentiate between the body's cells and foreign or abnormal cells that need to be destroyed.
Genetic variations of ERAP can alter how peptides are processed and presented to the immune system. Changes to the makeup of antigens presented on cells can result in autoimmunity, which is the activation of T cells, triggering an immune response on healthy tissue. These variants have been shown to increase susceptibility to a range of autoimmune diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriasis.
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