Nura Bio, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing neuroprotective and small molecule therapies for treating debilitating neurological diseases, announced the closing of over $140 million in Series A funding. And this includes adding $68 million to the initial Series A round of $73 million which was announced in 2020. This funding round was led by founding investor The Column Group, with participation from continuing investors Samsara Bio Capital and Euclidean Capital and new investor Sanofi Ventures.
The company also revealed the appointment of Shilpa Sambashivan, Ph.D., as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and a company Director. And as a member of the founding team at Nura Bio and Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), Dr. Sambashivan has been the driving force behind Nura Bio’s bespoke research engine and differentiated R&D pipeline, with the company’s first clinical candidate, NB-4746, recently completing Phase 1 studies in healthy volunteers.
Nura Bio’s funding comes at a pivotal point with the Phase 1 success of NB-4746, a brain-penetrant SARM1 inhibitor that has been shown to prevent axon degeneration and provide neuroprotection in multiple preclinical models of nerve injury and disease. And Nura Bio plans to initiate a Phase 1b/2 trial in a patient population in 2025.
The results from the recently completed Phase 1 study of NB-4746 in healthy volunteers show it was well-tolerated in the study’s single ascending and multiple ascending dose arms. And in this Phase 1 study, NB-4746 achieved targeted plasma exposure levels that the company believes are required for efficacy with no associated treatment-emergent severe adverse events. Cerebrospinal fluid levels of NB-4746 confirm brain penetration and support this molecule’s advancement in diseases that impact both the peripheral and central nervous systems.
KEY QUOTES:
“Under Shilpa’s leadership, Nura Bio has successfully transitioned to a clinical-stage organization, making remarkable progress in identifying ways to translate complex biology into potential therapies. We are excited to continue to support the company through this next phase of growth and clinical development. Shilpa’s leadership, combined with her deep scientific expertise, will be key to maximizing Nura Bio’s broad therapeutic potential in areas of large unmet need.”
-Tim Kutzkey, Ph.D., Managing Partner, The Column Group and Nura Bio’s founding chairman
“At Nura Bio, we have been laser-focused on our mission of delivering novel neuroprotective therapies to patients by leveraging our deep scientific understanding of underlying disease mechanisms including axon degeneration and neuroinflammation. The strong support demonstrated by our investors through this financing reflects the tremendous potential of our R&D pipeline. I am proud of the results our team has delivered. I look forward to leading the company through this next phase as we prepare to test the SARM1 hypothesis in a patient population in 2025 with our lead candidate NB-4746 while continuing to advance our promising preclinical pipeline.”
-Dr. Sambashivan
