Inozyme Pharma, Inc., a Boston, MA-based biotechnology company developing novel medicines to treat rare, debilitating, and life-threatening mineralization disorders, raised $67m in a Series A2 financing.
The round was led by Pivotal bioVenture Partners and Sofinnova Investments, with participation from RA Capital Management, Cowen Healthcare Investments, and Rock Springs Capital, as well as previous investors Longitude Capital, NEA, Novo Holdings, and Sanofi Ventures.
The company, which has raised $116m in total venture capital funding to date, will use the proceeds from the Series A2 financing to advance its lead enzyme replacement therapy, INZ-701, into clinical development for severe disorders of calcification associated with deficiencies in the enzyme ENPP1, including Generalized Arterial Calcification of Infancy (GACI) and Autosomal Recessive Hypophosphatemic Rickets Type 2 (ARHR2).
Founded in 2017 by Joseph Schlessinger Ph.D., Demetrios Braddock, M.D., Ph.D., and Axel Bolte, MSc., MBA, Inozyme is a biotechnology company committed to developing novel medicines for the treatment of rare mineralization disorders.
It is advancing INZ-701, an enzyme replacement therapy in development for the treatment of mineralization disorders of the circulatory system, bones, and kidneys. In preclinical studies, the experimental therapy has shown potential to generate plasma pyrophosphate (PPi) and to restore it to appropriate physiological levels, thereby preventing calcification in the vasculature and kidneys, while at the same time normalizing bone mineralization. Inozyme is developing INZ-701 for certain rare, life-threatening, and devastating genetic disorders such as ENPP1 Deficiency (GACI and ARHR2) and ABCC6 Deficiency (PXE) in which PPi levels are below the normal physiological levels.
The company, which licensed technology from Yale University, developed in the laboratory of Dr. Braddock, is currently completing the IND-enabling studies for INZ-701 and expects to initiate clinical trials in 2020.
FinSMEs
10/04/2019