Deucravacitinib
An allosteric TYK2 inhibitor already approved for psoriasis, now tested in alopecia areata and in the scarring alopecias.
- Developed by
- Bristol Myers Squibb
- Current phase
- Phase 2
- Indications
- Alopecia areata, Scarring alopecia
- Also known as
- BMS-986165, Sotyktu
- Last public activity
- July 2026
- Record confidence
- High
Tests whether it works, at what dose, in a few hundred people.
How it is meant to work
TYK2 is a JAK-family kinase, but deucravacitinib binds a regulatory domain rather than the ATP site the classic JAK inhibitors occupy. That selectivity is the entire proposition: it is approved for plaque psoriasis without the boxed warning class-labelled onto oral JAK inhibitors.
Why it matters
If it works here it changes the risk conversation rather than the efficacy one. The approved JAK inhibitors for alopecia areata carry warnings that make long-term use in an otherwise healthy young person a genuine decision; a drug reaching the same pathway with a different safety profile would matter even at lower efficacy. It is also, like delgocitinib, being taken into the scarring alopecias by academic investigators rather than by its sponsor — a second instance of the same pattern, and a hint that the cicatricial conditions are where the unmet need is currently loudest. Phase 2 in both; no results published.
Development history
- Phase 2
First Phase 2 trial on record: NCT05556265 — A Study to Evaluate Efficacy and Safety of Deucravacitinib in Participants With Alopecia Areata
ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
Registered trials
Pulled automatically from ClinicalTrials.gov. Matching is by name and development code, so occasional gaps are possible — tell us if you spot one.
Deucravacitinib in the Treatment of Cicatricial Alopecias
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · n=20 · May 2026
A Study to Evaluate Efficacy and Safety of Deucravacitinib in Participants With Alopecia Areata
Bristol-Myers Squibb · n=94 · November 2022
Listing a trial is not a recommendation to join one. Eligibility, risks and costs vary enormously — discuss any trial with your own doctor first.
Sources
- A Study of Deucravacitinib in Participants With Moderate to Severe Alopecia Areata — ClinicalTrials.gov
- Deucravacitinib in the Treatment of Cicatricial Alopecias — ClinicalTrials.gov