Deep Genomics Secures $40 Million Series B Funding to Advance AI-Discovered Wilson Disease Therapy and Expand Drug Discovery Platform

Today,Deep Genomics Inc. Announces Completion of $40 Million Series B Financing, to advance its Wilson’s disease therapeutic into clinical development and expand its proprietary artificial intelligence discovery platform to support the development of novel therapies for a broader range of common diseases.

Deep Genomics Inc. was founded in 2014 by Dr. Brendan Frey, a Canadian scholar and expert in machine learning and genomic biology. The company’s drug discovery platform comprises more than 20 machine learning systems specialized in analyzing the impact of genetic mutations on protein function and expression. Although the human genome contains millions of genetic variants, their associations with diseases are often difficult to decipher. According to Dr. Frey, AI systems can “scan 200,000 disease-causing genetic mutations within two hours and automatically select promising drug targets.” Rather than predefining specific disease areas, Deep Genomics allows its AI systems to independently identify targets for further development. After screening over 2,400 diseases and more than 120,000 genetic mutations, and analyzing potential targets based on over 150 criteria, the AI system determined that a gene mutation associated with Wilson’s disease warranted further investigation.

Vectivbio Raises $35 Million to Develop Treatments for Severe Rare Diseases

VectivBio, a company dedicated to the development of drugs for severe rare diseases, announced today that it has completed a $35 million financing round to further advance the clinical development of its lead candidate, apraglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) analog for the treatment of patients with short bowel syndrome (SBS). VectivBio stated that it expects to obtain Phase 2 trial data for apraglutide in patients with SBS in the first quarter of 2020.

Short bowel syndrome (SBS) results from intestinal resection due to chronic inflammatory bowel disease, trauma, mesenteric infarction, bariatric surgery, or congenital anomalies. Symptoms of SBS include diarrhea, dehydration, malnutrition, and weight loss. Patients with severe SBS require lifelong intravenous administration of essential nutrients to sustain life.

TwinStrand Raises $16 Million in Series A Financing

Today, gene sequencing company TwinStrand Biosciences announced the completion of a $16 million Series A financing round to accelerate the development of its product pipeline. The company’s proprietary Duplex Sequencing technology can be used for early cancer monitoring, genotoxicity analysis, and drug development, while also providing physicians with critical information needed for key clinical decisions.

Dual Sequencing is an upgrade to existing DNA sequencing platforms based on biochemistry and software technologies. It helps make clinically significant decisions by identifying ultra-low-frequency DNA mutations with a resolution 10,000 times higher than conventional methods.

Novome Secures $33 Million in Series A Funding

Today, Novome Biotechnologies announced the completion of a $33 million Series A financing round to advance its therapeutic candidate for primary hyperoxaluria into Phase 1 clinical development and to expand its genetically engineered microbial medicine (GEMM) platform to address additional indications. Primary hyperoxaluria is a metabolic disorder characterized by elevated urinary oxalate levels and is one of the leading causes of recurrent kidney stones.

Novome is dedicated to the treatment of chronic diseases. The company’s proprietary development platform enables engineered therapeutic bacteria to modulate and stabilize the patient’s gut microbiome. Novome’s lead preclinical program in hyperoxaluria focuses on developing biopharmaceutical products that degrade oxalate to prevent kidney stone formation. Additionally, the company leverages its synthetic biology platform to pursue therapeutic candidates for other indications.

References:

[1] VectivBio Launches with $35M Financing to Bring Best-in-Disease Medicines to Patients with Serious Rare Diseases, Retrieved Jan. 07, 2020, from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vectivbio-launches-with-35m-financing-to-bring-best-in-disease-medicines-to-patients-with-serious-rare-diseases-300982219.html

[2] Deep Genomics Raises $40 Million in Series B Financing，Retrieved Jan. 07, 2020, from https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200107005113/en

[3] TwinStrand Biosciences Raises $16M in Series A Funding，Retrieved Jan. 07, 2020, from http://www.finsmes.com/2020/01/twinstrand-biosciences-raises-usd-16m-series-a-funding.html

[4] Novome Biotechnologies Raises $33 Million Series A Financing and Appoints Blake Wise as Chief Executive Officer，Retrieved Jan. 07, 2020, from http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2020/01/07/1967372/0/en/Novome-Biotechnologies-Raises-33-Million-Series-A-Financing-and-Appoints-Blake-Wise-as-Chief-Executive-Officer.html