Spruce Biosciences is cutting over half of its employees as it looks to secure accelerated approval of a Sanfilippo syndrome therapy it recently acquired from BioMarin.
A little over a year after cutting 21% of its workforce, Spruce Biosciences disclosed it is axing 55% of its employees, according to an April 25 SEC filing. The San Francisco–based late-stage biopharma had 21 employees as of Dec. 31, 2024, according to an April 15 SEC filing, meaning that the layoffs could leave the business with around 10 employees.
Spruce noted in its most recent filing that it is reducing staff to prioritize development and potential accelerated approval of its tralesinidase alfa enzyme replacement therapy (TA-ERT) for Sanfilippo syndrome type B (MPS IIIB), a rare genetic disorder caused by an enzyme deficiency. Spruce announced on April 15 that it had acquired TA-ERT from BioMarin and intends to seek U.S. accelerated approval of the therapy for MPS-IIIB, starting with a new confirmatory trial. The company also noted that if its biologics license application (BLA) is approved, it will build a highly specialized commercial and medical affairs organization to support commercialization of the therapy.
For now, Spruce will operate with a streamlined staff. Its workforce cuts are effective immediately, with a termination date of May 2. The company expects to incur about $900,000 in cash charges in connection with the workforce reduction and to record most of those charges in the second quarter.
Spruce’s previously known workforce cuts came in March 2024, when the biopharma announced it was laying off 21% of its workforce as part of cost reductions that included the shutdown of its CAHmelia-203 clinical trial. In a separate press release, the company shared that its oral CRF1 antagonist tildacerfont had failed in a trial of adult classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia.
As Spruce looks for accelerated approval of TA-ERT, it will also need to contend with some financial challenges. In its April 15 SEC filing, the company noted that as of Dec. 31, 2024, it had an accumulated deficit of $250.3 million and cash equivalents of $38.8 million. Spruce stated that, “Without alternative financing or proceeds from other strategic alternatives, we believe, based on our current operating plan, that our cash and cash equivalents as of December 31, 2024 will be insufficient to fund our operations and debt obligations for at least 12 months following the issuance date of our financial statements.”
