Texas-based firm Sur180 Therapeutics, LLC has received a USD 1.14 million NIH Phase II SBIR award from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to advance its lead drug candidate towards an IND filing for endometriosis. The molecule, names Sur180, is a repurposed corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) receptor antagonist. Endometriosis is a condition affecting roughly 10% of women globally with no disease-modifying treatment options.
The funding is notable because all currently approved hormonal therapies for endometriosis suppress ovarian function, precluding use in patients seeking to preserve fertility. Sur180's candidate targets CRH receptors in a paracrine capacity within the reproductive system rather than through central hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis suppression. Phase I STTR data reported by the company indicated the compound reduced pain and proliferation markers in a rat autograft model of endometriosis while leaving the estrous cycle intact — a profile that, if reproduced in humans, would distinguish it from GnRH agonists and antagonists, progestins, and combined oral contraceptives currently dominating the treatment landscape.
Under the Phase II program, principal investigators Annelyn Torres-Reveron and Caroline B Appleyard will conduct pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies to identify the minimum effective dose, assess fertility preservation endpoints, and initiate a pre-IND dialogue with the US FDA. The grant runs through April 2027. Elagolix (Orilissa, AbbVie) and relugolix (Myfembree, Pfizer/Myovant) represent the most recently approved endometriosis therapies, both GnRH-pathway agents with known effects on bone density and contraindicated in pregnancy — a competitive gap Sur180 is explicitly targeting with its repositioning strategy.