ReCode Therapeutics – a clinical-stage genetic medicines company using precision delivery to power the next wave of mRNA and gene correction therapeutics – recently announced the closing of an extension to its Series B financing, raising an additional $50 million and the appointment of Kouki Harasaki, Ph.D., founding and managing partner of Bioluminescence Ventures (BLV), to the company’s board of directors. The company recently also concluded a final extension to its Series B financing, raising an additional $50 million for a total of $260 million in funding.
The new investor proceeds were backed by strong support from existing investors, including OrbiMed Advisors, AyurMaya (an affiliate of Matrix Capital Management), Leaps by Bayer, Vida Ventures, MPM Capital, Pfizer Ventures, EcoR1 Capital, Sanofi Ventures and Amgen Ventures, Osage University Partners (OUP), among others. The proceeds of the funding will be used to advance ReCode’s primary ciliary dyskinesia and cystic fibrosis clinical development programs and to expand the proprietary Selective Organ Targeting (SORT) lipid nanoparticle (LNP) pipeline to include mRNA and gene correction therapeutics for the central nervous system, lung, liver, and musculoskeletal indications.
Dr. Harasaki is the founding and managing partner at BLV. And he brings over 25 years of biomedical science experience in multiple therapeutic areas across major health systems, research institutes, biopharmaceutical corporations, technology companies, and venture capital firms. Before BLV, he was managing director at M12/Microsoft Ventures, where he led life science investments and helped develop Microsoft’s corporate strategy in the field. Before M12, Dr. Harasaki was a senior partner at Andreessen Horowitz.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are delighted to welcome Kouki to the board of directors and are confident his broad experience across many key areas such as drug discovery, strategy, finance and business development will be invaluable in guiding ReCode as it expands its robust clinical development plans in a number of important genetic medicine indications. We are excited with our progress to the clinic as we advance our SORT LNP delivery platform, the first technology to enable highly targeted delivery of genetic medicines to organs, tissues and cells including and beyond the liver.”
— Shehnaaz Suliman, M.D., MBA, M.Phil., chief executive officer, ReCode Therapeutics
“I am excited to join the ReCode team at this important juncture in its development. At BLV, we focus on funding next-generation therapeutics platforms and developing first- and best-in-class programs. ReCode, with its cutting-edge genetic medicine platform, is well aligned with our mission. I look forward to working with the board and the senior leadership team at ReCode to advance the next wave of genetic medicines to address a wide range of medical needs not possible with current therapies.”
— Dr. Harasaki
“Throughout 2023, we made tremendous progress entering the clinic, strengthening our financial position and building out our leadership team to support our genetic medicines clinical development programs. We are delighted with the continued high level of interest in our novel approach to the targeted delivery of genetic medicines from premier venture investors. We remain focused on achieving important upcoming clinical milestones, including dosing the first patients in our Phase 1 trial of RCT1100 for primary ciliary dyskinesia and we are also on track to file a number of investigational new drug applications with global regulators for RCT2100, our cystic fibrosis candidate, later this year.”
— Dr. Suliman
