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Subsidiary of VC-Backed ElevateBio Draws Moderna’s Attention
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By Brian Gormley, WSJ Pro
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Good day. Covid-19 vaccine developer Moderna Inc. is betting that gene-editing technology from a subsidiary of venture-backed ElevateBio could lead to cures for genetic diseases.
Moderna has formed a research-and-development collaboration with Life Edit Therapeutics Inc., a startup ElevateBio acquired in 2021. ElevateBio, which raised a $525 million Series C financing that year, has assembled manufacturing and other technologies needed to develop cell and gene therapies.
In addition to collaborating with industry partners, ElevateBio intends to selectively develop its own therapeutics, said Chief Executive David Hallal.
ElevateBio acquired Life Edit—a spinout from agricultural biotech AgBiome—because its technology could enable several methods of gene-editing, including the ability to knock out a mutated gene or knock-in a functioning one, he said.
Moderna uses messenger RNA to develop vaccines and drugs. Messenger RNA may hold promise to be used in the delivery of gene-editing treatments, according to Moderna and Life Edit, which didn’t disclose which genetic diseases they are targeting or specific financial terms of the collaboration.
ElevateBio also has partnerships with biotechs such as startup Abata Therapeutics. In a tight financial climate, ElevateBio is well-positioned to be a technology provider to companies to help them advance drug-development programs efficiently, Mr. Hallal said.
And now on to the news ...
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Yair Schindel, co-founder and managing partner of aMoon Fund. PHOTO: AMOON
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Boston expansion. AMoon Fund, an Israel-based venture investor that has backed high-profile U.S. healthcare companies such as Ultima Genomics Inc., has opened a Boston office and raised $340 million toward its second growth fund.
Founded in 2017, aMoon is a global investor that funds private and publicly traded companies. Its portfolio includes U.S. companies such as Ultima, which has secured more than $600 million in venture funding to develop new DNA-sequencing technology.
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AMoon’s new Boston office will improve the firm’s ability to identify and evaluate deals and assist U.S. portfolio companies, said Yair Schindel, co-founder and managing partner of aMoon.
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AMoon’s growth funds target mid- to later-stage companies. The firm also has separate funds for earlier-stage investments and publicly traded companies. Its ability to invest across stages provides advantages for portfolio companies, according to Dr. Schindel.
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Wall Street Backs New Class of Psychedelic Drugs
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Wall Street is betting tens of millions of dollars on psychedelic drugs that backers say could treat mental illness for a fraction of what it costs to do therapy with better-known treatments, The Wall Street Journal reports. Transcend Therapeutics Inc. raised $40 million from venture-capital investors in January to develop a post-traumatic stress disorder treatment that its 29-year-old CEO Blake Mandell says would require about half the amount of therapy as MDMA, or ecstasy, a popular hallucinogen. Gilgamesh Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Lusaris Therapeutics Inc. have announced capital raises of about $100 million since November for similar products addressing depression.
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Ozempic Runs Low for Diabetes Patients as Weight-Loss Use Surges
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Drugs like Ozempic have become so popular among people seeking to lose weight that they are now in short supply for patients with diabetes who depend on the medicines, WSJ reports. Diabetes patients said they are spending hours trying to find nearby pharmacies that have their prescriptions in stock. If they don’t, some patients have had to reduce dosing of Ozempic and similar drugs to stretch out their supplies, or switch to alternative drugs. The shortfalls are making it harder for people with diabetes to keep their blood-sugar levels low and limit their risk of complications like kidney disease and damage to blood vessels, doctors said.
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U.S. Aims to Create Semiconductor Manufacturing Clusters With Chips Act Funds
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The U.S. will target funds from the $53 billion Chips Act to create at least two semiconductor manufacturing clusters by 2030, according to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, marking the initial stages of a plan to bring more chip manufacturing back to the U.S., WSJ reports. The aim would be to create ecosystems that would bring together fabrication plants, research-and-development labs, final packaging facilities for assembly of chips and the suppliers needed to support each phase of the operation, Ms. Raimondo said.
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People
Breast cancer treatment startup PreciseDx appointed Bradley Gendell as chief financial officer. He was most recently managing director of 3Spoke Capital. New York-based PreciseDx is backed by investors including Merck Global Health Innovation Fund and IBM Ventures.
Radionetics Oncology Inc., a developer of novel radiotherapeutics for the treatment of a wide range of oncology indications, appointed Istvan Molnar to the post of chief medical officer. He was previously CMO at Lantheus Medical Imaging and at Fusion Pharmaceuticals. Radionetics Oncology counts 5AM Ventures and Frazier Healthcare Partners as backers.
Exits
Consumer products company Starco Brands Inc. purchased Soylent Nutrition Inc. for an undisclosed amount. The Los Angeles meal-replacement drink maker will operate as a separate business unit under the Starco Brands umbrella and will continue to be led by Chief Executive Demir Vangelov. Founded in 2013, Soylent has raised funding from Andreessen Horowitz, GV, The Production Board and others.
Filtration product developer Donaldson Company Inc. acquired Isolere Bio Inc., a developer of reagents and filtration processes used in the manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals. Terms weren’t disclosed. Isolere Bio is a portfolio company of Northpond Ventures.
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Hemab Therapeutics, a Copenhagen- and Cambridge, Mass.-based developer of prophylactic therapeutics for bleeding and thrombotic disorders, closed a $135 million Series B round led by Access Biotechnology. New investors Deep Track Capital, Avoro Ventures, Invus, Rock Springs Capital and Maj Invest Equity also participated in the round, along with existing backers Novo Holdings, RA Capital Management and HealthCap. Dan Becker of Access Biotechnology and Uya Chuluunbaatar of Avoro Ventures will join Hemab Therapeutics’ board.
Vytalize Health, a Hoboken, N.J.-based healthcare provider enablement platform, completed a $100 million investment. Led by Enhanced Healthcare Partners and Monroe Capital, the round included participation from North Coast Ventures.
Boca Biolistics, a Pompano Beach, Fla.-based company focused on the procurement, storage and sale of human biological samples used for clinical trials and diagnostic development, picked up a $25 million investment from Clairvest Group and its Clairvest Equity Partners VI fund.
Future Fields, a Canadian startup whose technology turns fruit flies into modular cleantech bioreactors which are used for the creation of things such as medicine, vaccines and cultivated meat, landed an $11.2 million funding round. Investors included Bee Partners, Toyota Ventures, Builders VC, AgFunder, Amplify Capital, Green Circle Foodtech Ventures, Siddhi Capital and Climate Capital.
Resalis Therapeutics, an Italy-based startup developing therapeutics for metabolic diseases, was seeded with a €10 million investment. Claris Ventures led the round, with Managing Partner Pietro Puglisi joining the board. Italian Angels for Growth and Club degli Investitori also contributed to the round.
Quell, a London-based fitness gaming developer, secured a $10 million Series A round. Tencent led the investment, which saw additional participation from Khosla Ventures, Heartcore Capital and Social Impact Capital.
Abilita Bio Inc., a San Diego-based startup developing membrane protein-targeted therapeutics, raised a $7.5 million funding round. Two Bear Capital was the investor, and Managing Partner Mike Goguen joined the board.
Current Surgical Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based developer of smart surgical tools for the treatment of solid tumors, snagged $3.2 million in seed financing. Lead investor True Ventures was joined by 1517 Fund and SciFounders in the round.
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Medtronic’s presence across many categories and geographic markets has hurt its ability to stay competitive. PHOTO: CFOTO/ZUMA PRESS
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