This second close of the Series B round, in addition to the initial close in fall of 2016, brings the total amount of this financing to $151m.
New Series B investors include INVUS Opportunities, Three Lakes Partners, Cycad Group, COM Investments, and Pivotal Alpha Limited. They joined the Series B led by ARCH Venture Partners, Baillie Gifford, Fidelity Management and Research Company, Partner Fund Management, and Venrock. Other investors include Bezos Expeditions, Vulcan Capital, Founders Fund, WuXi PharmaTech, and Mayo Clinic Ventures. Unity also announced that Graham Cooper, previously the chief financial officer of Receptos, which was acquired by Celgene in 2015 for $7.8 billion, has joined the board of directors.
Proceeds from this financing will be used to expand ongoing research programs in cellular senescence and advance the first preclinical programs into human trials.
Led by Keith Leonard, chairman and CEO, Unity leverages recent discoveries in the field of cellular senescence to develop a new class of therapies for diseases of aging called senolytic medicines. These medicines are designed to selectively eliminate senescent cells linked to diseases of aging, such as osteoarthritis, glaucoma, and atherosclerosis.
FinSMEs
17/08/2017