 SAN DIEGO, June 15, 2020 GLOBE NEWSWIRE -- aTyr Pharma, Inc. LIFE, a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on novel immunological pathways, today announced that it has dosed the first patient in a Phase 2 study evaluating its lead therapeutic candidate, ATYR1923, in COVID-19 patients with severe respiratory complications. ATYR1923 is a potential first-in-class immunomodulator that has been shown preclinically to downregulate T-cell responses and improve inflammation and lung function. ATYR1923 is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1b2a multi-center trial for patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis, a serious inflammatory lung disease. 