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NYRADA INC (NYR) - Inside Nyrada’s Bid to Protect the Brain and Heart After Attack

• Andrew Musgrave

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A blocked artery isn’t the end of the story—what happens when blood rushes back can decide how much tissue survives. We sit down with Nyrada CEO James Bonner to unpack how Xolatryp, a small molecule TRPC channel blocker, aims to protect mitochondria, cut calcium overload, and reduce injury after heart attack, traumatic brain injury, and stroke. With Phase I safety in the bank and a Phase IIA study planned for PCI patients, we dig into the practical metrics that matter: MRI‑based infarct size, blood biomarkers, heart function, and arrhythmia rates.

James explains why mitochondrial stability is the hinge point in ischemia‑reperfusion injury and how preclinical work with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research supports Xolatryp’s mechanism. We talk through the study design choices that bring the drug into the cath lab at the right moment, the potential to standardize dosing alongside angioplasty, and the broader clinical logic that could translate across cardiology and neurology. The conversation also explores Nyrada’s IP moat with a composition‑of‑matter patent, the company’s lean, virtual operating model, and a funding plan combining new equity and R&D rebates to carry the program through Phase IIA.

If you care about where the next leap in acute care may come from, this is a grounded look at a therapy built for minutes‑matter medicine. We share Nyrada’s two‑to‑three‑year outlook, including a licensing‑by‑indication strategy across key markets, and frame the market size anchored by roughly two million annual PCI procedures in developed regions. Subscribe for more ASX‑focused biotech briefings, share this with a colleague who tracks cardiovascular or neuro trauma innovations, and leave a review to tell us which endpoints you believe should define success.

Andrew Musgrave

Welcome again to ASX Briefs, where we explore the company’s making waves on the ASX. And today we're joined by James Bonner, the CEO of Nyrada Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel small molecule drugs that target TRPC ion channels to address conditions where treatment options remain limited. 
 James, thanks for joining me today and welcome to the ASX Briefs Podcast. 

James Bonnar

Yeah, thanks Andrew. It's great to be here.  

Andrew Musgrave

Now, James, for investors that may be unfamiliar with Nyrada, can you just provide a brief overview of the company?

James Bonnar

Yeah, sure. So Nyrada is a Sydney-based biotech. We're listed on the ASX under the code NYR. We have a market cap of around $70 million. And we in terms of what we do, we develop small molecule drugs. And our lead asset is a drug called Xolatryp. It's a neuro and cardioprotective treatment, and it's been designed to protect the brain and heart after major health events. For example, stroke traumatic brain injury and heart attack. And where we are with the development of Xolatryp, we've just completed successfully a Phase I trial which showed Xolatryp is safe and well tolerated. And we're now preparing for a Phase IIa study, and this will be in patients who have had a heart attack. And we are aiming to get that started early in the new year.

Andrew Musgrave

Okay, and looking at that Phase IIa trial for 2026, what are the key objectives of the next trial and what would success look like for the drug in a clinical setting?

James Bonnar

So, the trial will focus on patients undergoing a procedure called PCI, percutaneous coronary intervention. It's commonly referred to as angioplasty. And what that will mean is that the patients who have a heart attack, they'll get administered to an emergency department or a lab where they can perform that that procedure. And these are patients who have had a heart attack. And what we're looking to show in this study is, first of all, safety in the in this patient population. The other thing we're also looking to show is that the drug works as it did in preclinical animal studies. So, what we'll be looking at are things like injury size, and we'll be measuring that by MRI. We'll also be looking at blood injury biomarkers, and also, we'll look at heart function and how that's how that's performing. Another thing we'll be looking at also is the rate of arrhythmias. And so, these are dangerous irregular heartbeats, and the drug has been shown in preclinical studies to prevent arrhythmias, which is obviously a good thing. So, you know, if we can demonstrate some or all of that in this patient population, then that'll be a very strong signal for taking the drug forward.

 

 

 

 

Andrew Musgrave

Okay, and your recent findings highlighted Xolatryp's ability to stabilize mitochondria and reduce calcium overload. So, why is this such an important breakthrough in preventing cell damage after trauma or heart attack?

James Bonnar

So, first of all, just to explain briefly what mitochondria are. So, mitochondria, you can think of those as the power plants inside each cell.  They provide the energy for the cell to perform its function. And if they fail the cell dies and that leads to you know massive tissue damage and so on. And after trauma, these events that I've just described, calcium is released, and it enters the cell, and it damages the mitochondria. And so, what Xolatryp does is it blocks that calcium influx. And the study that you're referring to, Andrew, that was conducted in conjunction with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research at the DOD, and that was in an animal model of traumatic brain injury. And what that study showed was that Xolatryp helped maintain the health of these mitochondria. And that's consistent with the mechanism of action of the drug. So, it showed that the drug was doing what it was designed to do.

Andrew Musgrave

And looking at the patent, you filed a composition of matter patent application with positive feedback on novelty and inventiveness. So, how important is IP protection for Nyrada as you advance towards commercialization?

James Bonnar

So, for a biotech, strong IP protection is critical. It's effectively the company's most valuable asset. And we've applied for a composition of matter patent which is considered the gold standard in terms of level of protection. What that patent will provide once granted is 20 years of protection, and it means that we own the molecule outright. And strong IP protection is central to our strategy, and it sets the program up for you know licensing down the track.

Andrew Musgrave

Okay, and touching on the financials, you've raised over $8 million in new equity. So, how well funded is Nyrada to complete the upcoming Phase IIa trial and what's your approach to managing capital efficiency?

James Bonnar

So, we were very pleased with the way the recent capital raise went. We raised 8.25 million, and that with the cash that we had on hand and what we anticipate to receive back in R&D rebates, we believe that we're well funded to complete the Phase IIa study. The in terms of capital efficiency, you know, Nyrada is a fairly small operation. We maintain a small core team based here in Sydney. We operate largely virtual, so we subcontract out most activities. So, you know we're very capital efficient and make and we make sure that every dollar we spend you know drives the program forward.

 

 

 

Andrew Musgrave

Now looking at other opportunities, conditions like stroke, traumatic brain injury, and reperfusion injury currently lack effective treatments. So how large is the potential market opportunity for a therapy like Xolatryp if clinical trials are successful?

James Bonnar

So, the market potential is very large. If we look at, say, for example, just heart attack, the metric that we use is the number of these PCI procedures or angioplasties that occur each year. And we know from you know published statistics that around two million occur in the northern hemisphere in the developed markets. So, we're talking here Europe, the US, Japan, and China. So, you know, just a heart attack on its own is a very large market, and add to that traumatic brain injury and stroke, and the potential for a drug like Xolatryp is significant.

Andrew Musgrave

Okay, now James, just to wrap things up, if we look two to three years ahead, where do you see Nyrada positioned in the biotech landscape? And what's your message to potential investors following your progress?

James Bonnar

So, in two to three years, our goal is to have Xolatryp licensed for heart attack. And we are looking at a strategy where we license the drug out by indication by geography, and we use the capital that's generated from that to fund development of other indications and other new molecules. So, you know, we think that we're fairly well positioned where we are. We we've shown safety and tolerability in a Phase I study. We have strong intellectual property through our composition of matter patent, and we've got a clear path forward. And you know, the I think the key thing here to understand is that we look we're working in areas where there's significant unmet clinical needs. So, there's you know, there's large commercial potential there. And you know, it's not only important this this drug for patients, but we also think it'll deliver significant revenues in the future to keep our shareholders happy.

Andrew Musgrave

Okay, James. Well, thanks for coming on the show. It's been great to chat today, and we look forward to further updates from Nyrada in the upcoming months. 
 
 James Bonnar

Thanks, Andrew. You're welcome. 
 
 And that was James Bonner, the CEO of Nyrada. With a successful first human trial completed, strong collaborations in place, and a clear path towards Phase IIa trials, the company is aiming to tackle major health challenges with no current treatments. It's certainly one to watch as it works to deliver long term value for patients and shareholders alike. 
 
 Thanks for joining us on ASX Briefs. We'll see you next time.