Afraxis Inc.
This article was originally published in Start Up
Executive Summary
Afraxis Inc. is developing p21-activated kinase (PAK) inhibitors, initially for Fragile X syndrome, a genetic condition involving changes in the X chromosome that can lead to cognitive impairment and autism-like behaviors. The start-up thinks treatment of this orphan indication may be a gateway to developing PAK inhibitors for closely related conditions, such as autism and other central nervous system disorders like Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia.