US-based biomolecular drug developer Dewpoint Therapeutics launched yesterday with $60m of series A funding from investors including Leaps by Bayer, a vehicle formed by pharmaceutical and chemical producer Bayer.
Polaris Partners led the round, which included 6 Dimensions Capital, the venture capital firm co-founded by drug producer WuXi AppTec; Alexandria Venture Investments, which invests for real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities; Samsara BioCapital and EcoR1 Capital.
Dewpoint is researching therapeutics that will be based on biomolecular condensates, miniature cell structures that bring proteins and nucleic acids together in high volumes that strengthen chemical reactions important to the cells’ lives.
Condensates have been difficult to study using traditional methods but they could provide crucial information regarding cells and how they operate in relation to diseases which could prove important in drug development.
The company is putting together hubs in the US and Germany, and is exploring possible treatments for cancer, immunology, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disorders, virology and women’s health.
Wei Li, managing partner of 6 Dimensions Capital, is joining Dewpoint’s board of directors in connection with the round, as is Srinivas Akkaraju of Samsara BioCapital. Dewpoint’s CEO, Amir Nashat, is a managing partner of Polaris Partners, its founding investor.
Nashat said: “We are thrilled to have the backing of a world-class syndicate, an experienced team, and an interdisciplinary group of scientific advisors to tackle the important work of exploiting this long-overlooked arena of biology for drug discovery in areas of highest unmet medical need.”
