Pliant Therapeutics Cuts Workforce by 45% Amid Clinical Trial Challenges

Pliant Therapeutics, a San Francisco-based biotech company specializing in oral integrin inhibitors for fibrotic diseases, has announced a significant reduction in its workforce. The company is laying off approximately 45% of its employees in an effort to extend its cash runway and support ongoing late-stage clinical trials.

Workforce Reduction and Financial Implications

The decision to cut nearly half of its staff comes on the heels of challenges faced by Pliant's drug candidate bexotegrast. The company expects to complete the layoffs by the end of the second quarter, with associated costs estimated at $3.6 million. Based on Pliant's reported 171 full-time employees as of December 31, 2024, this reduction could affect around 77 employees.

Pliant's financial situation has been increasingly challenging, with net losses growing from $123.3 million in 2022 to $210.3 million in 2024. As of the end of 2024, the company reported $357.2 million in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, and short-term investments.

Bexotegrast Clinical Trial Suspension

The workforce reduction follows the voluntary suspension and subsequent discontinuation of the Phase IIb/III BEACON-IPF study of bexotegrast for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). This decision was made after a prespecified data review by an independent data safety monitoring board revealed an imbalance in unadjudicated IPF-related adverse events between the treatment and placebo groups.

Pliant is currently awaiting topline data from the BEACON-IPF trial, expected in the second quarter of 2025. The company will use this data to determine the next steps for bexotegrast's development, potentially considering additional dose-ranging Phase IIb studies in pulmonary fibrosis and other nonrespiratory indications, including liver diseases.

Corporate Strategy and Stockholder Rights Program

In response to recent challenges and financial pressures, Pliant has implemented a limited-duration stockholder rights program, commonly known as a "poison pill defense." This move came shortly after Kevin Tang's Concentra Biosciences acquired a significant stake in the company. The program aims to prevent any entity from gaining control of the business without offering stockholders an appropriate control premium and to allow the board sufficient time to make informed decisions in the best interests of all stockholders.