Launched out of 5AM Ventures’ 4:59 Initiative, Renasant Bio Inc. has secured $54.5 million in seed funding to support development of treatments for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), a genetic disease caused by mutations in the PKD1 and PKD2 genes, which encode polycystin proteins PC1 and PC2 that come together to form a calcium ion channel vital for kidney function.

Ube Corp. and Galts Pharma Co. Ltd., a venture company from Kumamoto University, have signed an agreement giving Galts exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and market UD-051 (GP-051), a compound discovered through joint research by Ube and Kumamoto University.

Renasant Bio Inc. has launched to develop new disease-modifying treatments for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), the primary genetic cause of end-stage renal failure. The $54.5 million in seed funding the company has secured will support advancement of its lead corrector program and ongoing discovery efforts for the company’s first-in-class potentiator program.

A mixed bag of top-line phase II data prompted stellar stock results for Prokidney Corp. and its chronic kidney disease (CKD) and diabetes therapy, rilparencel. The results came from two arms of the study, each with its own treatment regime. The market heartily took to the results as the company’s stock (NASDAQ:PROK) closed 515% upward at $3.73 per share after starting the day under $1 each.

Chinese researchers are preparing the details for the publication of another scientific milestone, the creation of a chimera with a human heart and a kidney developed from human stem cells in pig embryos.

Chinese researchers are preparing the details for the publication of another scientific milestone, the creation of a chimera with a human heart and a kidney developed from human stem cells in pig embryos. These studies aim to address the shortage of immunocompatible organ donors while shedding light on some of the most fundamental questions in developmental biology.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a chronic complication of type 1 and type 2 diabetes with albuminuria and progressive kidney failure; about 20%-40% of patients with diabetes will develop some type of kidney disease.

IgA nephropathy is a progressive kidney disease characterized by the deposition of immune complexes containing IgA, where a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) drives the production of pathogenic IgA. Jade Biosciences Inc. has developed a novel APRIL-binding therapeutic, JADE-101, for the treatment of IgA nephropathy.