Decoy Therapeutics Teams With Texas Biomedical Research Institute To Advance Broad-Spectrum Peptide Antivirals Against Influenza

Decoy Therapeutics, a preclinical subsidiary of Salarius Pharmaceuticals, has partnered with the Texas Biomedical Research Institute to evaluate its engineered peptide conjugate fusion inhibitors against multiple influenza strains, including the highly concerning H5N1 avian flu. This collaboration will help assess the potential of Decoy’s next-generation antiviral candidates as part of a broader infectious disease strategy.

“We are highly optimistic our pan-influenza inhibitors will show in vitro activity in influenza regardless of strain due to in silico testing showing their strong binding affinity to the viral target. In fact, the in silico free energy of our influenza inhibitors is at least as good as our pan-coronavirus inhibitors, which have demonstrated excellent in vitro and in vivo activity,” stated Salarius Chief Scientific Officer Barbara Hibner, Ph.D.

The development of pan-influenza inhibitors builds on Salarius’ existing work with pan-coronavirus and pan-paramyxovirus peptides. Through its IMP3ACT platform, the company aims to eventually create a single broad-spectrum antiviral capable of addressing the three viral families responsible for most severe seasonal respiratory infections. Salarius is also exploring agricultural applications, including the potential use of these peptides to protect egg-laying poultry flocks.

“Our IMP3ACT platform is built around a rapid design-build-test-learn loop enabled by machine learning and rapid synthesis for the ‘design’ and ‘build’ steps,” Dr. Hibner added. “By working with Texas Biomed we are adding world-class capabilities for the ‘test’ step. We are proud to collaborate with Texas Biomed’s renowned scientists and to leverage their leading in vitro virology testing capabilities and look forward to expanding our relationship with their world-class scientific and medical resources as we advance our pipeline.”

Following the completion of an $8 million public offering and the finalized merger with Decoy Therapeutics in November 2025, Salarius is accelerating development of Decoy’s pipeline. Over the next year, the company plans to advance its lead pan-coronavirus candidate toward an IND submission and continue progress on other programs, such as a multi-virus antiviral targeting flu, COVID-19, and RSV, as well as a peptide-drug conjugate for gastrointestinal cancers.

“Seasonal influenza continues to be a global health concern, and the recent rise of H5N1 strains of avian flu currently circulating in the U.S. is heightening concern of another pandemic,” said Luis Martinez-Sobrido, Ph.D., a professor at Texas Biomed. “The rapid speed at which the avian virus can mutate when introduced to a new host increases its potential for human-to-human transmission. This underscores the pressing need for potent inhibitors with activity against multiple influenza strains and their mutations.”

The collaboration comes at a time when influenza continues to pose a significant global health burden, intensified by emerging viral mutations, drug-resistant strains, and recent outbreaks of avian flu. The World Health Organization estimates that seasonal influenza affects up to a billion people each year, leading to millions of severe cases and as many as 650,000 respiratory deaths, while pandemic scenarios are projected to carry annual economic impacts of around $60 billion.

“Seasonal influenza-like illness, from flu to RSV and COVID – continue to be an enormous unmet medical need, responsible for more than 10 million medical visits every year in the U.S. alone. Merck's recent $9.2 billion acquisition of Cidara Therapeutics, maker of the long-acting antiviral for flu CD388 after Phase 2 trials, clearly demonstrates big pharma and investor interest in novel antivirals,” said Salarius Chief Executive Officer Rick Pierce. “We are leveraging the strengths of our IMP3ACT platform to create a single antiviral therapeutic that is broadly active across these respiratory viruses, positioning Salarius to potentially address a very large global commercial opportunity and possible future global respiratory viral pandemic threats.”