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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):
September 28, 2026
Unicycive Therapeutics, Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
|
Delaware |
|
001-40582 |
|
81-3638692 |
(State or other jurisdiction
of incorporation or organization) |
|
(Commission File Number) |
|
IRS Employer
Identification No.) |
1975 W. El Camino Real, Suite 204
Mountain View, CA 94040
(Address of principal executive offices)
Registrant’s telephone number, including
area code: (650) 351-4495
(Former name or former address, if changed since
last report)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class: |
|
Trading Symbol(s) |
|
Name of each exchange on which registered: |
| Common Stock |
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UNCY |
|
Nasdaq Capital Market |
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended
to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ☐ | Written communication pursuant to Rule 425 under the
Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ☐ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the
Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under
the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ☐ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under
the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth
company as defined in as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter). Emerging growth company ☒
If
an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying
with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.
Item 5.02 Departure
of Directors or Principal Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Principal Officers.
On
September 28, 2026, Unicycive Therapeutics, Inc. (the “Company”) appointed Meredith S. Manning as
an independent director on the Company’s board of directors, effective October 1, 2026. Ms. Manning will serve on each of the Audit,
Compensation and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees, and also as the Chairperson of the Nominating and Corporate Governance
Committee.
Meredith
S. Manning, M.B.A., has more than 25 years of global biopharmaceutical experience. Most recently, she served as Chief Commercial Officer
of Soleno Therapeutics, Inc. from 2024 until its acquisition by Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. in 2026. At Soleno, she built the commercial
organization from inception and led the U.S. launch of VYKAT™ XR, the first FDA-approved treatment for hyperphagia in Prader-Willi
syndrome. As a member of the executive team, she also played a key role in asset evaluation, lifecycle planning, and due diligence, and
led the selection of ex-U.S. distribution partners. Previously, Ms. Manning served as President, The Americas, and a voting member of
the U.S. Board of Directors of PharmaEssentia Corporation from 2020 to 2023. In this role, she built the U.S. company from the ground
up, with general management and P&L responsibility for all U.S. functions. She was a key member of the team that secured FDA approval
of BESREMi® (ropeginterferon alfa-2b-njft), led its U.S. commercial launch, and supported the company’s capital-raising efforts,
including engagement with U.S. and global investors. Prior to joining PharmaEssentia, she served as Chief Commercial Officer of resTORbio,
Inc. Earlier in her career, Ms. Manning served as Vice President, Global Marketing and Product Strategy Lead, Hemophilia, at Shire (formerly
Baxter/Baxalta), where she led a seven-brand portfolio across more than 65 countries. She also held senior U.S. marketing and field leadership
roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, including the launch of INCIVEK® (telaprevir), and director-level roles in oncology
business development, marketing, and managed care at Pfizer Inc. Ms. Manning holds a B.A. in political science from The Colorado College
and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
The
Company believes that Ms. Manning is qualified to serve on its Board of Directors because of her extensive experience building and leading
biopharmaceutical organizations, her record of successful product launches across rare disease, oncology, and hematology, and her general
management, global commercialization, and value-creation expertise.
There
is no arrangement or understanding between Ms. Manning and any other person, other than the Company’s directors acting solely in
their capacity as such, pursuant to which she was selected as a director of the Company. Ms. Manning is not related by blood, marriage
or adoption to any director or executive officer.
The
Company is not aware of any transaction, or currently proposed transaction, in which the Company was or is to be a participant and in
which Ms. Manning, or any member of her immediate family, had or will have a direct or indirect material interest that would be required
to be reported under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On
September 29, 2026, the Company issued a press release announcing resubmission of a New Drug Application for Oxylanthanum Carbonate. A
copy of the press release is furnished as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and incorporated by reference herein (except
for the fourth paragraph therein).
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits
(d) Exhibits.
| 99.1 |
| Press Release of Unicycive Therapeutics, Inc. dated September 29, 2026. |
| 104 |
| Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document). |
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Dated: |
September 29, 2026 |
|
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| |
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UNICYCIVE THERAPEUTICS, INC. |
| |
|
|
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By: |
/s/ Shalabh Gupta |
| |
|
Shalabh Gupta |
| |
|
Chief Executive Officer |
Exhibit 99.1

Unicycive
Therapeutics Announces Resubmission of New Drug Application for Oxylanthanum Carbonate
| - | Resubmission of NDA includes Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) data from a new drug product manufacturing vendor |
| | | |
| - | The resubmission package includes 12 months of OLC drug product stability data from the new manufacturing vendor |
| | | |
| - | Company anticipates FDA acceptance of the NDA within 30 days of resubmission; new assigned PDUFA date expected to be 6 months from resubmission |
| | | |
| - | Current cash position allows runway into 2H 2027 |
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., September 29, 2026 -- Unicycive
Therapeutics, Inc. (“Unicycive” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: UNCY), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing
therapies for patients with kidney disease, today announced the resubmission of its New Drug Application (NDA) for oxylanthanum carbonate
(OLC), the Company’s investigational oral phosphate binder for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney
disease (CKD) on dialysis. The Company anticipates United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acceptance of the NDA within 30 days
and a new assigned PDUFA date to be six months from the date of resubmission.
The NDA resubmission includes CMC data from a
new third-party drug product manufacturing vendor. The new vendor’s facility was last inspected by the FDA in March 2024 and received
“No Action Indicated” status, the highest FDA inspection classification indicating that a facility is in an acceptable state
of current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) compliance. The new vendor’s CMC data package includes technical specifications similar
to the original third-party manufacturing vendor, and the new vendor has already produced OLC drug product and completed 12-month stability
studies. In addition, the Company has provided additional in-vitro bridging data between the two vendors as recommended by the FDA in
previous discussions.
In June 2026, the Company received a Complete
Response Letter (CRL) from the FDA regarding the first OLC NDA resubmission. The 2026 CRL cited the same third-party manufacturing deficiencies
identified in a previous CRL issued in June 2025 to the initial NDA submission, as a result of the FDA not having conducted the reinspection
of the original third-party manufacturing vendor. The FDA did not raise concerns regarding clinical efficacy or safety data and did not
request additional data from the Company. The Company’s original third-party manufacturing vendor has received written notification
from the FDA that its facility inspection has been assigned, but the inspection has not yet occurred as of September 29, 2026. If the
original third-party manufacturing vendor is inspected in the near term and deemed cGMP-compliant, the Company plans to seek FDA alignment
on a shorter approval timeline for the OLC NDA resubmission. Unicycive intends to keep both drug product vendors to maintain supply chain
redundancy.
“We believe this resubmission reflects an
efficient path to potential approval and, if approved, a potentially faster path to bringing OLC to patients who need additional treatment
options,” said Shalabh Gupta, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Unicycive. “By adding an alternative primary manufacturing
vendor, we are positioning the NDA for expedient review and potential approval. If the FDA’s assigned inspection of the original
vendor is completed favorably in the interim, that outcome could provide a potential timing benefit. We continue to advance commercial
readiness activities in anticipation of a potential launch, with the goal of helping patients with CKD on dialysis who continue to struggle
with hyperphosphatemia.”
The NDA is supported by data from three clinical
studies: a Phase 1 study in healthy volunteers, a bioequivalence study in healthy volunteers, and a tolerability study of OLC in CKD patients
on dialysis, along with multiple preclinical studies and CMC data.
As of June 30, 2026, unaudited cash, cash equivalents
and marketable securities totaled $61.4 million, supporting continued OLC commercial launch preparation and an expected cash runway into
the second half of 2027.
About Oxylanthanum Carbonate
OLC is an investigational oral
phosphate binder that leverages proprietary nanoparticle technology to deliver high phosphate binding potency, reducing the number and
size of pills that patients must take to treat hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) on dialysis. Its potential
best-in-class profile may have meaningful patient adherence benefits over currently available treatment options as it requires a lower
pill burden.
Unicycive is seeking FDA approval of OLC via the 505(b)(2) regulatory
pathway. OLC is protected by a strong global patent portfolio including issued patents on composition of matter with exclusivity until
2031, and with the potential for patent term extension until 2035.
About Hyperphosphatemia
Hyperphosphatemia is a serious medical
condition that occurs in nearly all patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Annually there are over 450,000 individuals in the
U.S. that require medication to control their phosphate levels.1 Uncontrolled hyperphosphatemia is strongly associated
with increased death and hospitalization for CKD patients on dialysis. Treatment of hyperphosphatemia is aimed at lowering serum phosphate
levels via two means: (1) restricting dietary phosphorus intake; and (2) using, on a daily basis, and with each meal, oral phosphate
binding drugs that facilitate fecal elimination of dietary phosphate rather than its absorption from the gastrointestinal tract into
the bloodstream.
| 1 | Flythe JE. Dialysis-Past, Present, and Future: A Kidney360 Perspectives
Series. Kidney360. 2023 May 1;4(5):567-568. doi: 10.34067/KID.0000000000000145. |
About Unicycive Therapeutics
Unicycive Therapeutics is a biotechnology company
developing novel treatments for kidney diseases. Unicycive’s lead investigational treatment is oxylanthanum carbonate, a novel
phosphate binding agent for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney disease who are on dialysis. Unicycive’s
second investigational treatment UNI-494 is intended for the treatment of conditions related to acute kidney injury. It has been granted
orphan drug designation (ODD) by the FDA for the prevention of Delayed Graft Function (DGF) in kidney transplant patients and has completed
a Phase 1 dose-ranging safety study in healthy volunteers. For more information, please visit Unicycive.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.
Forward-looking statements
Certain statements
in this press release are forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements
may be identified using words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “forecast,” “estimated” and “intend”
or other similar terms or expressions that concern Unicycive’s expectations, strategy, plans or intentions. These forward-looking statements
are based on Unicycive’s current expectations and actual results could differ materially. There are several factors that could cause
actual events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited
to, clinical trials involve a lengthy and expensive process with an uncertain outcome, and results of earlier studies and trials may
not be predictive of future trial results; our clinical trials may be suspended or discontinued due to unexpected side effects or other
safety risks that could preclude approval of our product candidates; our dependence on third parties for manufacturing; the possibility
that FDA may require inspection of any vendor prior to approval, which could delay or prevent approval of our NDA; the risk that the
original third-party manufacturing vendor’s reinspection may not occur within a timeframe that benefits our regulatory timeline,
or may result in adverse findings; risks related to business interruptions, which could seriously harm our financial condition and increase
our costs and expenses; dependence on key personnel; substantial competition; uncertainties of patent protection and litigation; dependence
upon third parties; market acceptance of our products; and risks related to failure to obtain FDA clearances or approvals and noncompliance
with FDA regulations. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various
important factors, including: the uncertainties related to market conditions and other factors described more fully in the section entitled
‘Risk Factors’ in Unicycive’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, and other periodic reports
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the
date hereof, and Unicycive specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
Investor Contacts:
Kevin Gardner
LifeSci Advisors
kgardner@lifesciadvisors.com
Media Contact:
Unicycive Therapeutics
media@unicycive.com
SOURCE: Unicycive Therapeutics, Inc.