A $72 million Series B extension includes new investors Johnson & Johnson and Bristol Myers Squibb to take Rome Therapeutics’ lead asset through to Phase I studies in autoimmune disease.
Pictured: Money growth/iStock, RomoloTavani
Boston biotech Rome Therapeutics added big name pharma companies to its investor roster with its Series B extension Tuesday. The additional $72 million in financing was backed by Johnson & Johnson and Bristol Myers Squibb, bringing the total raise to $149 million.
Rome is focusing its drug discovery on 98% of the largely uncharted part of the human genome, known as the dark genome, which primarily consists of genomic repeats in the non-coding regions of the genome.
The biotech company is ready to advance its lead asset into the clinic, and now has the funds to do so.
“Capital from this raise enables us to progress our lead program into clinical trials and advance our pipeline and platform—collectively demonstrating the ability to translate our unique understanding of the dark genome, specifically the viral-like elements within it, into transformative therapies,” Rome CEO Rosana Kapeller said in a statement.
The lead candidate is an inhibitor of LINE-1 reverse transcriptase, a viral like protein that triggers an immune response contributing to autoimmune disease development. The protein is expressed in diseased cells, but not healthy ones, suggesting potential to block pathogenic inflammation without compromising the body’s response to infection, according to the company.
The LINE-1 RT inhibitor will be developed in multiple autoimmune conditions, including lupus. The Series B extension financing will cover early trials, including Phase I and proof of mechanism studies.
Additional programs in Rome’s discovery pipeline focus on oncology—targeting cancer cells expressing high levels of repeat-derived antigens and repeat-induced genomic instability—and neurodegeneration.
The initial Series B was announced in 2021, adding Sanofi’s investment arm and others to the company’s existing investors—ARCH Ventures, GV and Mass General Brigham Ventures. Tuesday’s Series B extension includes new investors BMS and J&J.
Rome isn’t J&J’s first foray into the dark genome. In 2022, the pharma’s venture fund participated in a roughly $42 million Series A for a new U.K.-based biotech dubbed Nucleome Therapeutics. Nucleome’s first target is also autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
Kate Goodwin is a freelance life science writer based in Des Moines, Iowa. She can be reached at kate.goodwin@biospace.com and on LinkedIn.
