PsiThera has raised $25 million to advance oral TNFα and TL1A inhibitors for immune and inflammatory diseases.

US biotechnology company PsiThera has raised $25 million in financing to advance its pipeline of oral small-molecule treatments for immune and inflammatory diseases.

The financing includes new investment from AbbVie Ventures and Lumination Capital, alongside existing lead investors Samsara BioCapital and Lightstone Ventures and other existing investors.

The proceeds will support development candidate nomination and the initiation of investigational new drug (IND)-enabling studies for PsiThera’s lead oral tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) inhibitor. Funding will also advance its oral tumour necrosis factor-like ligand 1A (TL1A) programme into lead optimisation.

In connection with the financing, Claire Leurent, managing director at AbbVie Ventures, has joined PsiThera’s board of directors.

The company’s pipeline focuses on cytokine pathways involved in immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, including TNFα, TL1A and interleukin-6 (IL-6).

Oral alternatives to injectable immunology drugs

TNFα is an established therapeutic target in immunology, with injectable biologic treatments approved for several immune-mediated conditions.

However, PsiThera is seeking to develop small-molecule inhibitors that could offer an oral alternative to existing injectable therapies.

The company believes oral treatments could provide additional options for patients who have not started biologic treatment, as well as potentially being used alongside other therapies.

Its lead TNFα programme is designed to achieve a differentiated therapeutic profile compared with injectable biologics and other oral TNFα inhibitors in development.

Eric Shaff, president and chief executive officer of PsiThera, said: “Our goal is to bring the efficacy of leading biologics into novel oral medicines to improve on their therapeutic profiles. This financing accelerates our progress toward that vision as we advance our oral TNFα program toward development candidate nomination and clinical initiation and expand our pipeline of differentiated immunology therapeutics, starting with TL1A.”

QUAISAR platform targets protein movement

PsiThera uses its proprietary QUAISAR platform to identify and design small-molecule drugs targeting proteins involved in disease.

The technology combines physics-based molecular simulation, machine learning and experimental biophysics in a closed-loop drug discovery process.

It models protein movement to identify transient binding pockets that may not be visible through conventional structure-based drug design. These pockets could provide opportunities to develop small molecules against targets that have historically been difficult to address with oral medicines.

Using QUAISAR, PsiThera said it advanced its lead TNFα programme from hit identification to lead optimisation in four months.

The platform is intended to improve the identification and optimisation of drug candidates by combining computational predictions with experimental testing.

Christina Isacson, chair of PsiThera’s board of directors and partner at Lightstone Ventures, said: “PsiThera has brought together seasoned biopharma leadership, experienced drug hunters, and immunology and computational scientists around a platform that can find and exploit protein states that conventional approaches cannot effectively drug.”

She added: “Our progress with TNFα and TL1A is illustrative of the power of the platform. With this financing, the Company is well-positioned to advance its lead programs and extend its platform across a broader immunology pipeline.”

Expanding the oral immunology pipeline

The financing will allow PsiThera to progress its lead TNFα programme towards development candidate nomination and IND-enabling studies while continuing work on its TL1A inhibitor.

TL1A is another cytokine target being investigated for inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases. PsiThera’s programme is currently at the lead optimisation stage.

The company is also exploring opportunities to apply its discovery platform to other cytokine targets, including IL-6.

PsiThera is headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts, and focuses on developing oral therapeutics for diseases where treatment has historically relied heavily on injectable medicines.

The latest financing provides additional capital to advance its early-stage pipeline towards preclinical development.