Garuda Therapeutics, a US-headquartered developer of therapeutics based on blood stem cells, publicly launched yesterday with $72m in series A funding from investors including healthcare provider Mass General Brigham.
Aisling Capital, Northpond Ventures and Orbimed co-led the round, which also featured Cormorant Asset Management, Ridgeback Capital Investments, Monashee Investment Management, Sectoral Asset Management and National Resilience.
Mass General Brigham participated in the round through strategic investment vehicle Mass General Brigham Ventures.
Garuda is working on technology intended to generate blood stem cells without requiring external donors, and it is intended to form the basis of treatments for haematologic malignancies, sickle cell disease, β-thalassemia and diseases cause by bone marrow failure.
Dhvanit Shah, Garuda’s co-founder, president and chief executive, said: “Our technology has the potential to transform blood stem cell transplants, revolutionising the landscape of medicine.
“Eliminating the need for donor or patient cells while gaining the ability to exploit stem cell engineering would democratise blood stem cell transplants, ensuring this vital, and often curative, therapy can be made accessible to any bone marrow transplant eligible patient in need.
“Today, we are thrilled to launch Garuda with the support of our incredible investors and management team, comprised of industry experts in blood stem cell and bone marrow transplants.”
