ArunA Bio, a biotech company based in Athens, has raised $13 million from Eshelman Ventures, members of the company’s board of directors and management, and other investors.
ArunA Bio will use the funding to support the development of its neural exosome delivery platform and neural exosome therapies for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS, Huntington’s Disease and stroke, according to a news release. Mark Sirgo, CEO of ArunA Bio, said the new funding brings ArunA Bio’s total raised to nearly $24 million.
The company also plans to grow its employee headcount and work to meet future regulatory requirements. ArunA Bio is also looking to partner with pharmaceutical and biotech companies with a presence in the neurodegenerative disease space to develop its platform.
In addition, the company has also opened an office in Research Triangle Park in North Carolina—where more than 550 companies have offices at the North Carolina Biotechnology Center. The company said it will increase its management presence in RTP and will continue its ongoing research and manufacturing activities in Athens.
Sirgo said the company has 20 employees total, with the majority located in Athens. ArunA Bio is currently hiring for a number of positions in research and development and will continue hiring as its programs progress and expand.
“We expect to expand further expand our research and senior management team over the next year,” he said.
An exosome is a membrane vesicle secreted from various cells that exists in the cerebrospinal fluid and other bodily fluids, such as saliva and urine. Scientists have discovered that major causes of neurodegenerative diseases are transmitted by EVs. Research is ongoing to analyze the relationship between neurophysiology and neurological disorders centered on EV-mediated communication between neural and glial cells.
ArunA Bio is working on researching the natural abilities of neural exosomes to cross the blood brain barrier and enhance the body’s anti-inflammatory, self-repair and protective mechanisms to treat a range of neurodegenerative disorders. The company is also using its platform to create synergistic therapies by enhancing exosomes with RNA, oligonucleotides, antibodies and small molecules.
ArunA Bio plans to conduct studies and use data to support the submission of ArunA Bio’s first pre-investigational new drug package to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in a few months.
"We will continue to advance our neural exosome delivery platform and pipeline of novel neural exosome therapies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases," Sirgo said. "We plan to meet with FDA to discuss our first investigational new drug application early next year. This could potentially allow us to enter the clinic in 2021."
