# NATSAR Pharmaceuticals

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

## TL;DR

NATSAR Pharmaceuticals is a Maryland company developing RK-33, a drug that blocks DDX3, a protein many tumours depend on. It plans a first trial in people.

## Summary

NATSAR Pharmaceuticals, founded by Venu Raman of Johns Hopkins University, develops RK-33, a small-molecule inhibitor of the RNA helicase DDX3. The company reports anti-tumour activity in preclinical models of sarcoma, brain tumours, pancreatic, lung and triple-negative breast cancer and breast cancer bone metastasis, and radiosensitisation of cells that overexpress DDX3, and plans a phase 1 programme with an intravenous formulation. A National Cancer Institute SBIR award, in its second year in 2026, funds the development of RK-33 for breast cancer.

## Fields

- Kind: Company
- Last checked: 2026-11-04
- Also known as: Natsar Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Natsar
- HQ: Ellicott City, MD
- Type: biotech
- Website: https://www.natsarpharmaceuticals.com/

## Notes

- Company website and the NIH RePORTER record read on 4 November 2026. The website calls RK-33 first-in-class; that is the company's claim.

## Sources

- Official website: https://www.natsarpharmaceuticals.com/
- NIH RePORTER: award 5R44CA295155-02: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11419762

## Connected records

- cancers: [Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)](https://onco.cc/cancers/tnbc/)
- fronts: [Targeted Therapy](https://onco.cc/fronts/targeted-therapy/)
- targets: [DDX3X](https://onco.cc/targets/ddx3x/)
- drugs: [RK-33](https://onco.cc/drugs/rk-33/)

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