Virtici, LLC announced today the spin-out of a new drug development company, Rise Therapeutics, which is focused on developing microbiome-based, immunological therapies. To form the spin-out, Rise obtained key microbiome-related intellectual property and technologies incubated at Virtici to support the development of first-in-class, orally-delivered, biological medicines.
With the growing understanding of the microbiome and the processes by which the microbiome modulates the human immune system, Rise Therapeutics is developing the next generation of first-in-class immune-modulating therapies based upon a vast new array of targets. Rise Therapeutics leverages its unique and proprietary TriPartite X (TPX) platform to deliver targeted biologics orally, a novel step forward in the context of protein-based medicines. As a delivery vehicle, TPX is ideally suited to deliver any biological therapy orally and, in the context of Rise’s therapeutics product development interests, targeting immunology of the gut is a key breakthrough that gives Rise a competitive drug development advantage. At present, two product candidates have been selected for clinical testing with the identification and characterization of other possible novel targets underway.
“The microbiome of the gut is a critical immunological ecosystem” says Gary Fanger, President and CEO of Rise Therapeutics. “By understanding how the microbiome influences our immune system via the intestinal tract, we can design appropriate immunological medicines that can treat a variety of diseases including inflammation, autoimmunity and cancer. With our proprietary TPX delivery platform, we can exploit these microbiome discoveries to deliver biological-based medicines orally that target key pathways in the intestinal tract.”
Rise’s proprietary TPX technology is based upon work from the laboratory of Dr. David Pascual, Professor at the University of Florida. The Intellectual property to support the platform and initial therapeutic programs were licensed from the University of Florida and Montana State University. With these novel scientific discoveries, Rise is rapidly moving its first program into clinic development. In addition, Rise is expanding the core foundation technologies and working with its partners in the context of more broadly exploiting TPX to deliver oral biological therapies.
Rise Therapeutics represents another spin-out from the three affiliate companies, Virtici, Celdara Medical, and MBV. With a goal of enhancing industry innovation, Virtici, Celdara Medical, and MBV specialize in identifying and developing novel early-stage innovations from research institutions from across North America and increasingly, beyond. Partnerships and new spin-outs are core to accelerating the value base of the model from these three affiliated companies.
ABOUT RISE THERAPEUTICS, LLC
At the crossroads of the microbiome and immunology, Rise Therapeutics is developing immunologically-directed biological therapies using a unique and proprietary oral delivery platform. Based in Rockville, Maryland, Rise leverages its target discovery expertise to understand microbiota gut biology as it relates to regulation of the immune system. Utilizing these biological discoveries to identify new immune regulatory pathways Rise develops immune modulatory drugs for therapy of autoimmunity, inflammatory disease, and cancer. With its proprietary Tripartite X (TPX) platform, Rise can deliver these first-in-class biological therapies orally. For more information about Rise Therapeutics, please visit www.risetherapeutics.com.
ABOUT VIRTICI, LLC
Founded in 2011, Virtici is a privately held product-development company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Virtici’s mission is to improve quality of life and save lives, and is primarily developing products to improve the way we treat cancer, autoimmunity, and cardiovascular/metabolic diseases. Virtici, working closely with our affiliates Celdara Medical and MBV, partners with inventors and their research institutions, bringing the business and finance expertise to accelerate product development. Working with its partners in the pharmaceutical industry, Daiichi Sankyo and Grunenthal Group, Virtici connects the entire product development lifecycle by improving innovation, enhancing discovery and increasing product development efficiencies. For more information about Virtici, please visit www.virtici.com.
Celdara Medical was founded by Drs. Jake Reder and Michael Fanger in 2008. CM has locations outside of Boston in Lebanon, NH, in New York, NY, and in Washington, DC. Celdara Medical builds academic and early-stage innovations into high-potential medical companies, identifying discoveries of exceptional value at the earliest stages and moving them toward the market. Celdara Medical partners with inventors and their institutions, providing the developmental, financial, and business acumen required to bridge discovery and profitability. With robust funding options, a diverse and high impact Programmatic pipeline, and partnerships with world-class academic institutions and industry leaders, Celdara Medical navigates all aspects of a complex industry, accelerating science to improve human health. For more information about Celdara Medical, see www.celdaramedical.com or write to
MBV, LLC was founded in 2015 to help inventors leverage their discoveries to improve human health. MBV partners with scientists to develop their ideas commercially by providing expertise in pre-clinical/clinical development, financing, intellectual property, licensing, and business development. MBV leverages a variety of funding sources and both internal and external expertise to develop products and partnerships in the biotechnology, medical device and pharmaceutical industries. Located in Indianapolis, IN, MBV has partnered with Celdara Medical and Virtici, providing decades of development experience on both coasts while working to develop the best from a large pool of under-accessed assets in the Midwest. For more information about MBV, please visit www.mononbioventures.com.