# Elritercept

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/elritercept/  
OnCo record `elritercept` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Elritercept is Keros and Takeda's ligand trap for the anaemia of myelodysplastic syndromes, a relative of luspatercept, in phase 3 trials.

## Summary

Keros Therapeutics designed elritercept (KER-050) to release the brake that activin-class ligands put on erythropoiesis and thrombopoiesis; Takeda licensed it in 2024 as TAK-226. Phase 2 data showed transfusion independence in lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes including patients with ring sideroblasts, and phase 3 trials in transfusion-dependent lower-risk MDS are registered. Luspatercept is the approved comparator in the class.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: phase-3
- Last checked: 2026-09-16
- Also known as: TAK-226
- Tags: pipeline; ctgov-ingest
- Code: KER-050
- Modality: Activin receptor type IIA ligand trap (fusion protein), subcutaneous
- Mechanism: Binds TGF-beta family ligands such as activin A and GDF11 that hold back red cell and platelet precursors, freeing late-stage blood cell production in ineffective haematopoiesis.

## Sources

- ClinicalTrials.gov: trials of Elritercept: https://clinicaltrials.gov/search?intr=KER-050

## Connected records

- cancers: [Myelodysplastic syndromes / neoplasms (MDS)](https://onco.cc/cancers/mds/)
- technologies: [Cytokines & engineered cytokines](https://onco.cc/technologies/cytokine-therapy/)
- trials: [A Study of Elritercept to Treat Anemia in Adults With Very Low, Low, or Intermediate Risk Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) Who Need Regular B](https://onco.cc/trials/nct06499285/)

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