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Atalanta Therapeutics Closes Oversubscribed $97 Million Series B Financing to Advance Two RNAi Therapies for CNS Diseases to Clinical Trial
– IND submissions planned in 2025 for first two programs within leading portfolio of di-siRNA therapies
– Series B funds will support progressing programs for KCNT1-related epilepsy and Huntington’s disease through clinical proof-of-concept
BOSTON, January 28, 2025 – Atalanta Therapeutics, a biotechnology company pioneering RNA interference (RNAi) for the treatment of neurological diseases, today announced the completion of a $97 million Series B financing to support Phase 1 clinical trials of the company’s investigational RNAi therapies for KCNT1-related epilepsy and Huntington’s disease. The financing was co-led by EQT Life Sciences and Sanofi Ventures, with participation from other new investors RiverVest Venture Partners, Novartis Venture Fund, funds managed by abrdn Inc, Pictet Alternative Advisors, Mirae Asset Financial Group, and GHR Foundation alongside existing investor F- Prime Capital.
The Series B financing brings Atalanta’s total capital generated to-date from financings and partnerships to $262 million. In conjunction with this financing, the company announced the appointments of Arno de Wilde, M.D., Ph.D., MBA, managing director at EQT Life Sciences; Jason Hafler, Ph.D., managing director of Sanofi Ventures; and Niall O’Donnell, Ph.D., managing director of RiverVest Venture Partners to its Board of Directors.
“This financing validates the truly transformative potential of Atalanta’s best- in-class di-siRNA platform for delivering oligonucleotide therapies to the central nervous system and the exciting promise of our expansive wholly- owned pipeline,” said Alicia Secor, Atalanta’s president and chief executive officer. “Importantly, this Series B will support a path to the clinic for two programs for serious neurological diseases that today lack disease-modifying therapies — KCNT1-related epilepsy and Huntington’s disease — and will anchor our growing franchise of investigational medicines for Huntington’s disease. We are diligently progressing these programs toward IND submissions next year so that we can start our Phase 1 trials and reach patients who are waiting.”
ATL-201 is Atalanta’s investigational therapy for KCNT1-related epilepsy, an early-onset seizure disorder and encephalopathy driven by gain-of-function variants in the KCNT1 gene. Infants and children with KCNT1-related epilepsy have severe, frequent seizures that are unable to be controlled with anti- seizure medications, and they often experience developmental delays and intellectual disability. ATL-201 is designed to reduce KCNT1 levels and to normalize neuronal excitability. Preclinical studies have shown that ATL-201 produces a significant reduction of seizures and improvement in behavior with impressive durability and tolerability.
The company’s second development candidate, ATL-101, is a di-siRNA designed to silence the HTT gene for the treatment of Huntington’s disease. Huntington’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease caused by an expansion of the HTT gene, which leads to deterioration in a person’s physical, cognitive, and psychiatric abilities. Preclinical studies have shown that a single dose of ATL-101 produces a potent and strong reduction in HTT expression, including in deep brain regions, with six months of durability and excellent tolerability.
A full overview of the company’s pipeline, unveiled today, is available here.
“Atalanta’s di-siRNA technology has shown promising ability to durably silence disease-promoting genes throughout previously inaccessible regions of the brain and spinal cord — opening a wide range of treatment possibilities for devastating neurological diseases,” said Dr. de Wilde. “EQT Life Sciences is proud to co-lead this investment in Atalanta’s future as part of such a high-quality investor syndicate, and we look forward to partnering with Atalanta’s leadership to support their continued success.”
“We are excited to partner with Atalanta as they enter their next chapter as a clinical-stage company,” said Mr. Hafler. “Their success to-date in advancing partnered di-siRNA programs is a strong validation of their ability to create meaningful new RNAi therapies, and Sanofi Ventures is glad to support Atalanta as they advance their exciting wholly-owned pipeline.”
About Atalanta Therapeutics
Atalanta Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing treatments for intractable diseases of the central nervous system using RNA interference. Atalanta’s unique platform of divalent small interfering RNA (di-siRNA) enables durable, selective gene silencing throughout the brain and spinal cord. Atalanta is advancing a wholly owned pipeline of disease-modifying programs for Huntington’s disease, genetic epilepsy, severe chronic pain, and other neurological diseases in addition to partnered programs as part of a strategic collaboration with Genentech. Atalanta is headquartered in Boston, Mass. For more information, visit www.atalantatx.com.
Media Contact:
Lisa Raffensperger
Ten Bridge Communications
lisa@tenbridgecommunications.com