Novartis bets $80M on Pliant's preclinical NASH prospect

Novartis has put up an initial $80 million to land the global license to Pliant Therapeutics’ preclinical nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) asset and three additional candidates. The NASH drug, PLN-1474, is a small molecule inhibitor of integrin αVβ1 Pliant thinks can reduce the growth of fibrotic tissue in the liver.