Tribune Therapeutics, a Stockholm- and Oslo-based biotech company developing therapies for fibrotic diseases, has secured €37 million in seed and Series A funding. The Series A round, totaling €23 million, was led by LifeArc Ventures and joined by Industrifonden and Investinor, alongside existing investors Novo Holdings, HealthCap, Innovestor’s Life Science Fund, and Inven2. The funding will support the clinical development of TRX-44, Tribune’s lead candidate targeting the CCN protein family, with initial focus on idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The company aims to address fibrotic conditions by targeting key proteins involved in scar tissue formation, a different approach from current treatments that focus primarily on inflammation or growth factors. In addition to advancing TRX-44 into trials, Tribune will continue developing other candidates targeting downstream regulators of fibrosis.
Tribune Therapeutics develops therapeutics for fibrotic diseases. The company focuses on targeting the CCN family of proteins, which play a central role in scar tissue formation. Its lead candidate, TRX-44, is being developed for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and is designed to mimic the activity of the endogenous protein CCN5. Tribune’s research approach involves modulating downstream regulators of fibrosis with the aim of addressing fibrotic processes across different tissues.
“Tribune was founded on groundbreaking discoveries about the underlying drivers of fibrosis. From the beginning, it was clear that these discoveries had far-reaching therapeutic implications,” said Georg Vo Beiske, PharmD, Tribune Chief Executive Officer and HealthCap Venture Partner. “Advancing our programs towards the clinic with the backing of such a strong and prestigious investor group further increases our confidence in our innovative approach to treat fibrotic diseases, many of which are fatal.”
Current standard-of-care for the millions of patients with fibrotic diseases of the lung, kidney, liver and other tissue types is limited to managing symptoms or moderately slowing disease progression by targeting inflammatory mediators or growth factors. To create broadly applicable disease-modifying therapies, Tribune is instead targeting downstream, tissue-agnostic gatekeepers of scar formation and tissue remodeling, including the CCN family of proteins.
The company’s lead program, TRX-44, is currently in development for the treatment of fibrotic conditions including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a chronic fibrotic lung disease that leads to respiratory failure and death within three to five years of diagnosis. The Series A financing will prepare TRX-44 to begin clinical trials and will advance additional programs targeting the CCN protein family.
TRX-44 prevents scar formation by mimicking the structure and function of CCN5. CCN5 is an endogenous protein that naturally blocks the pro-fibrotic effects of other CCN family members, including CTGF/CCN2 and WISP1/CCN4, on multiple cell types contributing to the fibrotic pathology. This approach is an evolution from blocking individual CCN proteins and their upstream activator, TGF-beta, and has the potential to combat a broader set of fibrotic diseases while avoiding the toxic side effects that have hampered the development of less targeted approaches.
“Fibrotic diseases like IPF are devastating and often terminal,” said João Ribas, PhD, Principal of Novo Holdings. “Tribune’s approach exploits the biology of CCNs to shut down a key pro-fibrotic pathway, and is the kind of novel strategy that can meaningfully impact the treatment of multiple fibrotic indications.”
“After reviewing the preclinical data for TRX-44 and meeting the impressive team behind it, we recognized the potential transformational impact of this strategy,” said Chris Baker, PhD, Investment Principal at LifeArc Ventures. “Tribune has the opportunity to pioneer a new approach to the treatment of fibrotic diseases that could make debilitating conditions like IPF manageable, improving quality of life and giving new hope to thousands of patients diagnosed each year.”
In conjunction with the financing, LifeArc’s Baker and Industrifonden’s Jonathan Ilicki, MD, MBA, will join Tribune’s board.
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Read the orginal article: https://arcticstartup.com/tribune-therapeutics-raises-e37m-seed/
