Laronde Inc., a company developing a new class of closed-loop RNA constructs for future medicines, has raised $440 million in series B financing. Unfurling at a pivotal moment for RNA-based therapies and vaccines, the company's approach is a bet on early evidence that its "endless" RNA loops can produce stable, enduring and tunable protein expression to fight disease.

Xalud Therapeutics Inc. raised an oversubscribed $30 million series C financing to continue advancing its lead candidate, XT-150, for regulating interleukin-10 in order to treat pathologic inflammation. The injectable, plasmid DNA gene therapy expresses IL-10v, a modified version of the cytokine IL-10, and is in a phase IIb study for treating moderate to severe pain caused by osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee.

Vigencell Inc., a company focused on immune cell therapy, raised ₩99.4 (US$85.17 million) through an IPO on South Korea’s Kosdaq board and plans to use the funds to drive its R&D and company operations. “We particularly want to increase the competitiveness of our pipeline by advancing our technology and clinical development,” Vigencell CEO Tai-Gyu Kim told BioWorld. “We will also expand our discovery of new candidates and R&D in general, as well as updating our facilities and hiring researchers.”

DUBLIN – Cardior Pharmaceuticals GmbH has closed a €64 million (US$75 million) series B round, enabling it to move its lead micro-RNA (miRNA) inhibitor program into late-stage development in heart failure. The financing sets the stage for a potential revival of a therapeutic modality that had otherwise fallen out of favor with investors and with big pharma.

Atavistik Bio Inc. has raised $60 million in a series A financing round to advance its preclinical molecules targeting genetically validated targets in metabolic diseases and cancer.