BOSTON, Mass. — Mursla Bio, a leader in extracellular vesicle (EV) science focused on advancing precision diagnostics for chronic disease, announced a new collaboration with a major global pharmaceutical company known for its expertise in precision medicine and biomarker-guided drug development. The partnership will apply Mursla Bio’s AI Precision Medicine Platform to support drug development and patient stratification in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
As part of the collaboration, Mursla Bio will generate hepatocyte-specific extracellular vesicle (h-EV) profiles from blood samples collected from a well-characterized cohort of individuals with MASH and matched healthy controls. The effort will examine mode-of-action-related biomarkers and evaluate biomarker panels that may help identify patients most likely to respond to the pharmaceutical partner’s investigational therapy.
The initial phase of work will focus on deepening understanding of liver tissue biology in MASH by building tissue-labeled, high-dimensional mRNA and protein datasets from circulating h-EVs. These datasets will support the definition of mode-of-action pathways and patient-stratification signatures while strengthening Mursla Bio’s AI liver disease models developed through its MEV01 clinical study. The findings are expected to enhance the platform’s applicability across future therapeutic programs.
The collaboration extends the reach of Mursla Bio’s clinically validated technology beyond its lead product, EvoLiver, developed for liver cancer surveillance among patients with cirrhosis. The same analytical and regulatory infrastructure that enabled EvoLiver to obtain FDA Breakthrough Device Designation will be used to advance exploratory biomarkers into potential companion diagnostics for metabolic liver diseases.
“This collaboration reflects the growing demand from global pharmaceutical leaders for our AI Precision Medicine Platform,” said Pierre Arsène, Founder and CEO of Mursla Bio. “As the GLP-1 revolution reshapes obesity management, MASH is rapidly emerging as the next major therapeutic focus, and the need for precise liver-specific biomarkers has never been greater. By profiling intact hepatocyte biology protected within the cargo of h-EVs, we are enabling a new generation of biomarker-guided precision medicine in liver care. This partnership deepens our reach in hepatology, expanding on the foundation established with EvoLiver.”
MASH represents an advanced stage of fatty liver disease and is closely linked to increasing global rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes. The condition affects an estimated 5 to 7 percent of the world’s adult population, with more than 75 percent of cases occurring among individuals who are overweight, obese, or living with type 2 diabetes. Characterized by excess fat accumulation in the liver that leads to inflammation and cellular injury, MASH can progress to cirrhosis and may ultimately result in liver failure or liver cancer.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
