Rune Labs Inc. is on a mission to make the mysteries of the brain easier to read for both clinicians and biopharma companies. Having a fresh $22.8 million in a series A financing on the books will no doubt make the goal easier to reach.
LONDON – Anjarium Biosciences AG has raised $61 million in a series A to advance development of a new class of gene therapy it is developing from the ground up to overcome shortcomings of current viral vector-based products. The Zurich, Switzerland-based company is assembling a toolkit of stable DNA vectors and targeted lipid nanoparticle and exosome delivery vehicles that it said will lead to “bespoke expression of genes” and address the underlying causes of genetic diseases in a more predictable, repeatable and lasting way.
Chicago-based Vanqua Bio Inc. has raised $85 million in series B financing to accelerate development of its therapies tackling Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. Founded in 2019, Vanqua’s technology is focused on developing small-molecule activators of glucocerebrosidase, an enzyme that regulates levels of lipids in cells.
The market’s appetite for immunology candidates in chronic disease – in particular an oral interleukin-17 (IL-17) therapy for psoriasis – was proved by the upsized IPO pulled off by Dice Therapeutics Inc., and Tyra Biosciences Inc. benefited from the ongoing appetite in precision oncology in another, bigger-than-expected debut. Preclinical-stage Pasithea Therapeutics Inc. went public as well, albeit less spectacularly.
The axolotl, which can regenerate many of its body parts, was the inspiration for Walking Fish Therapeutics Inc., which just closed on a $50 million series A financing to advance its B-cell therapies for oncology, rare disease, regenerative medicine, autoimmune disease and recombinant antibody production.