Asceneuron, which develops small molecules targeting tau protein aggregation, plans to use the funds to advance its Alzheimer’s disease asset into Phase II.
Clinical-stage biotech Asceneuron announced Tuesday that it has secured an oversubscribed $100 million Series C round to help progress its lead asset to treat Alzheimer’s disease to advance further in the clinic.
The funding was led by Novo Holdings and also included new backers, including OrbiMed, SR One and EQT Life Sciences-LSP Dementia Fund, in addition to its existing investors.
Asceneuron’s lead candidate, ASN51, is an oral small molecule designed to inhibit OGA, an enzyme associated with protein aggregation. The drug aims to prevent the aggregation of tau proteins and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The funding will be used to push ASN51, which has so far completed five Phase I clinical trials, into Phase II development, which will start later this year, according to Asceneuron.
“This high caliber life sciences investor syndicate further validates the potential of our OGA inhibitor pipeline and leadership in the field of tauopathies,” Asceneuron CEO Barbara Angehrn Pavik said in a statement. “We are excited to advance our lead asset ASN51 into Phase 2 clinical development, recognizing its potential to significantly expand treatment options for patients with Alzheimer’s disease.”
According to the company, OGA inhibition has also shown potential to prevent the aggregation of proteins that are fundamental to other neurodegenerative diseases. Asceneuron’s pipeline includes ASN51 for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease, as well as a separate OGA inhibitor, ASN90, for treating orphan tauopathy progressive supranuclear palsy that was licensed to Ferrer last year.
Asceneuron is advancing in the Alzheimer’s sector as Eli Lilly’s donanemab was approved by the FDA earlier this month. Marketed as Kisunla, the anti-amyloid antibody is designed to modify the course of Alzheimer’s and will directly compete with Biogen and Eisai’s anti-amyloid antibody Leqembi, which was approved last year.
“We are now witnessing the approvals of the first disease modifying antibody based injectable therapies,” Naveed Siddiqi, senior partner of venture investments at Novo Holdings, said in a statement. “Asceneuron’s innovative oral small molecule drug targeting intracellular tau offers the potential for a paradigm shift in the way this neurodegenerative disease is treated.”
