scholar rock® is a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing a new class of biologic therapies called "niche modulators" that selectively target the activation of growth factors in the disease microenvironment. our initial proprietary and partnered drug discovery programs target specific growth factors, including members of the tgf-beta superfamily, which play a fundamental role in regulating cell growth and differentiation and are present in the microenvironments of significant diseases such as fibrosis, diseases of the musculoskeletal systems, and autoimmune diseases. the company’s therapeutic approach is enabled by discoveries made by scholar rock’s scientific founders—professors timothy springer, phd, and leonard zon, md, both of children's hospital boston and harvard medical school—related to the molecular mechanisms of growth factor activation. scholar rock is backed by leading life sciences investors, including polaris partners, arch venture partners, timothy s