Strategic partner Leverage the existing Novartis collaboration for emricasan to approach parallel-large pharma and CROs with joint development interests in liver disease, especially where regulatory or commercialization support is beneficial.

Clinical momentum Target hepatology clinics and research networks celebrating progress in emricasan across multiple etiologies; offer co-promotional opportunities or investigator-initiated trial support to expand evidence generation in diverse liver disease settings.

NASH focus Explore partnerships with companies active in NASH cirrhosis and portal hypertension, leveraging emricasan's biomarker reductions to position as a complementary therapy in advanced liver disease pipelines.

Geographic expansion Propose regional licensing or distribution deals in markets where liver disease prevalence is high and clinical trial activity is strong, using Conatus’ modest scale as a value proposition for faster market entry.

Clinical data leverage Bundle emricasan with companion diagnostic or biomarker panels to strengthen value propositions for pharma partners seeking differentiated signals of efficacy and patient stratification in liver diseases.