Rezo Therapeutics, a biotechnology company pioneering the integrated mapping of disease networks for precision therapeutics, launched with $78 million from a Series A financing.
- Integration of technologies across proteomics, genetics, structural biology, chemistry, and bioinformatics enables advanced insights into disease biology for accelerated drug discovery
- Initial drug discovery focus in oncology
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 17, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rezo Therapeutics, a biotechnology company pioneering the integrated mapping of disease networks for precision therapeutics, launched today with $78 million from a Series A financing. The Series A financing was led by SR One, a16z Bio + Health, and Norwest Venture Partners, and also included SV Angel, Liquid 2 Ventures, and Hawktail. Rezo’s platform is based on technology from the Quantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI) at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) developed by Nevan Krogan, Ph.D., director of QBI and a co-founder and chief executive officer of Rezo. Chemistry pioneer and inventor of leading drugs targeting KRAS, Kevan Shokat, Ph.D., is also a co-founder as well as a professor at UCSF, and an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).
Rezo’s Sequence to Systems to Drugs (SSD) platform integrates data from proteomics, genetics, structural biology, and chemical biology approaches using sophisticated computational methods to create comprehensive maps of molecular disease networks. The platform enables the rapid identification and study of disease-causing protein and genetic interactions, which would be difficult to discover using traditional, often siloed, scientific methods. Rezo’s disease-specific maps are designed to pinpoint novel, druggable targets that can be attacked with a range of treatment modalities.
“Rezo’s strategy is to lead the convergence of advanced experimental technologies and computational applications to reveal unprecedented insights into disease biology, which can lead to truly novel therapeutics,” said Dr. Krogan. “The body is a sophisticated, complicated mosaic of cell and molecular interactions, yet the field has been relying on a ‘two-dimensional’ view to solve disease. By integrating technological advances and leveraging complementary strengths between industry and academia, we believe there is an untapped opportunity to map and target the interactions that go awry in disease.”
George Scangos, Ph.D., co-founder and chairman of the board at Rezo, added, “Through sophisticated analysis of cellular and molecular interactions of disease, including the protein-protein, genetic and biochemical interactions that cause disease, Rezo is poised to fundamentally shift the way we understand disease biology and approach drug discovery.”
Rezo aims to rapidly advance a pipeline of therapies, initially focused in solid tumor oncology guided by mutation and allele-specific biomarkers. The company is identifying how mutations rewire cancer-driving networks to uncover tumor-specific therapeutic targets, which can potentially guide both the discovery of biomarkers for patient stratification and the development of precision medicines.
Scientific co-founders and leaders include:
- Nevan Krogan, Ph.D., is a co-founder and the chief executive officer of Rezo. Dr. Krogan is a professor at UCSF, director of QBI, and a senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes.
- Kevan Shokat, Ph.D., is a co-founder and a professor at UCSF as well as an investigator of HHMI.
- George Scangos, Ph.D., is a co-founder and chair of the board of directors of Rezo. Dr. Scangos is the president, chief executive officer and a member of the board at Vir Biotechnology, and was previously the chief executive officer at Biogen.
- Nobert Bischofberger, Ph.D., is a co-founder and member of the board of directors of Rezo. Dr. Bischofberger is the president and chief executive officer of Kronos Bio, and was previously the executive vice president of research & development and chief scientific officer at Gilead Sciences.
- Sourav Bandyopadhyay, Ph.D., is a co-founder and the chief scientific officer of Rezo. Dr. Bandyopadhyay is a professor of Bioengineering & Therapeutics Sciences at UCSF, co-leader of the Molecular Oncology Program at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, and associate director of QBI at UCSF.
- Natalia Jura, Ph.D., is a co-founder of Rezo. Dr. Jura is a professor of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, an investigator at the Cardiovascular Research Institute, and an associate director of QBI at UCSF.
About Rezo Therapeutics
Rezo is pursuing an integrated approach to drug discovery that leverages the multiple technologies and tools needed to bring disease networks into focus, pinpointing novel targets and therapies with more clarity. Rezo’s Sequence to Systems to Drugs (SSD) platform integrates proteomics, genetics, structural biology, chemistry and bioinformatics to create maps of molecular disease networks. Based on the work of the founding team at the Quantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI) at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the company’s mission is to break the mold in traditional drug development, which is slow and often siloed. The company’s initial focus is in oncology, with plans to explore additional therapeutic areas through collaborations and partnerships. To learn more, visit the company’s website at www.rezotx.com or its LinkedIn.
Rezo Contacts
Sylvia Wheeler
swheeler@wheelhouselsa.com
Aljanae Reynolds
areynolds@wheelhouselsa.com
