Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a pharmaceutical company based in

Plano, Texas Plano ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "flat surface" /'plano/) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, where it is the largest city in Collin County, Texas, Collin County. A small portion of Plano is located in Denton County, Texas, Denton Count ...

. Founded in 2002, it is primarily focused on investigating experimental oral

antioxidative Antioxidants are compounds that inhibit oxidation, a chemical reaction that can produce free radicals. Autoxidation leads to degradation of organic compounds, including living matter. Antioxidants are frequently added to industrial products, s ...

and

anti-inflammatory Anti-inflammatory is the property of a substance or treatment that reduces inflammation, fever or swelling. Anti-inflammatory drugs, also called anti-inflammatories, make up about half of analgesics. These drugs reduce pain by inhibiting mechan ...

drugs, which dually activate the antioxidative transcription factor

Nrf2 Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2), also known as nuclear factor erythroid-derived 2-like 2, is a transcription factor that in humans is encoded by the ''NFE2L2'' gene. NRF2 is a basic leucine zipper (bZIP) protein that may regu ...

and inhibit the pro-inflammatory transcription factor

NF-κB Nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) is a family of transcription factor protein complexes that controls transcription (genetics), transcription of DNA, cytokine production and cell survival. NF-κB is found i ...

. The last CEO of Reata Pharmaceuticals was J. Warren Huff. In July 2023, it was announced Reata had been acquired by the

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

-headquartered multinational

biotechnology Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field that involves the integration of natural sciences and Engineering Science, engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms and parts thereof for products and services. Specialists ...

company,

Biogen Biogen Inc. is an American multinational biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States specializing in the discovery, development, and delivery of the treatment of neurological diseases to patients worldwide. Biogen ope ...

for nearly $6.5 billion. The purchase was completed on September 26 and Reata stock was delisted from the Nasdaq.

Pipeline

The antioxidative and anti-inflammatory compounds

bardoxolone methyl Bardoxolone methyl (also known as “RTA 402”, “CDDO-methyl ester”, CDDO-Me, and more formally methyl bardoxolonate) is an experimental and orally- bioavailable semi-synthetic triterpenoid, based on the scaffold of the natural product ol ...

and RTA 408 are the lead clinical development compounds in Reata’s portfolio.

Bardoxolone Methyl

Bardoxolone methyl Bardoxolone methyl (also known as “RTA 402”, “CDDO-methyl ester”, CDDO-Me, and more formally methyl bardoxolonate) is an experimental and orally- bioavailable semi-synthetic triterpenoid, based on the scaffold of the natural product ol ...

was one of the first of the class of synthetic triterpenoids to be studied in the clinic. It has been evaluated in Phase 1 studies for

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

, Phase 2 and 3 studies for

chronic kidney disease Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a type of long-term kidney disease, defined by the sustained presence of abnormal kidney function and/or abnormal kidney structure. To meet criteria for CKD, the abnormalities must be present for at least three mo ...

(CKD) associated with

type 2 diabetes Type 2 diabetes (T2D), formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent ...

, and is currently being evaluated in a Phase 2 study for

pulmonary arterial hypertension Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a syndrome in which the blood pressure in the pulmonary arteries and pulmonary arterioles (the blood vessels located proximal to the capillary bed, the site of oxygen exchange in the lungs) is elevated. T ...

RTA 408

Omaveloxolone (RTA 408) is a second generation member of the synthetic oleanane triterpenoid compounds. The FDA approved Skyclarys (omoveloxolone) in 2023 for the treatment of Friedreich’s ataxia (FA), a hereditary neurological disorder that strikes during adolescence and leaves patients wheelchair-bound and often cuts short their lives. Skyclarys was also approved in the European Union, Canada, the UK, and Brazil in April 2025. Skyclarys become the first drug approved for the condition, which affects roughly 5,000 who have been diagnosed in the United States and 22,000 worldwide. Preclinical studies demonstrated that RTA 408 possesses antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities, as well as the potential to improve mitochondrial bioenergetics. Because of the broad applicability of such effects across many diseases, RTA 408 is currently under clinical investigation in several Phase 2 clinical studies including immunooncology, corneal endothelial cell loss associated with cataract surgery

Friedreich’s ataxia Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) is a rare, inherited, autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects the nervous system, causing progressive damage to the spinal cord, peripheral nerves, and cerebellum, leading to impaired ...

, and

mitochondrial myopathies Mitochondrial myopathies are types of myopathies associated with mitochondrial disease. Adenosine triphosphate ( ATP), the chemical used to provide energy for the cell, cannot be produced sufficiently by oxidative phosphorylation when the mitochon ...

Others

Reata was also actively engaged in the discovery of small molecule disease-modifying drugs that function by stabilizing the normal three-dimensional structure of target proteins or generally enhancing the folding environment of the cell. Defects in protein folding underlie a large number of genetic diseases including certain forms of

, familial

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

, and

cystic fibrosis Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder inherited in an autosomal recessive manner that impairs the normal clearance of Sputum, mucus from the lungs, which facilitates the colonization and infection of the lungs by bacteria, notably ''Staphy ...

Protein folding Protein folding is the physical process by which a protein, after Protein biosynthesis, synthesis by a ribosome as a linear chain of Amino acid, amino acids, changes from an unstable random coil into a more ordered protein tertiary structure, t ...

defects are also believed to play important roles in the development of non-inherited forms of many of these diseases.

Partnerships

Reata has a

licensing agreement A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

with

Kyowa Hakko Kirin is a Japanese pharmaceutical and biotechnology company under the Kirin Holdings, and is among the 40 largest in the world by revenue. The company is headquartered in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo and is a member of the Nikkei 225 stock index. History On ...

for development and commercialization of

for CKD and related indications in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

, and other select Southeast Asian countries. Reata also has a licensing agreement with

Abbvie AbbVie Inc. is an American pharmaceutical company headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois. It is ranked sixth on the list of largest biomedical companies by revenue. In 2023, the company's seat in Forbes Global 2000 was 74, and rank 89 on the ...

for development and commercialization of bardoxolone methyl outside the U.S., excluding Asian markets defined in the agreement with

and Reata also have a second agreement for development of the second generation portfolio of synthetic oleanane triterpenoid compounds, including RTA 408, as well as other Nrf2 activators.

References

External links

* {{authority control Pharmaceutical companies of the United States Pharmaceutical companies established in 2002 Companies based in Plano, Texas Health care companies based in Texas Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq 2016 initial public offerings 2023 mergers and acquisitions