Alembic Pharma on Friday announced that it has made a strategic investment in RIGImmune, a biopharmaceutical research company co-founded by two prominent Yale University professors that’s focused on the development of novel treatments for RNA viruses.
Alembic said it has acquired preferred stock in RIGImmune amounting to a 19.97% post-money stake in the first closing of the series seed round that was completed recently.
The biotech was founded by Dr. Anna Pyle and Dr. Akiko Iwasaki is focused on the development of RNA based therapies for viral diseases and oncology applications by targeting the innate immune target, RIG-I.
RIGImmune will utilize the proceeds of the series seed round to further the development of therapeutic oligonucleotides developed by Pyle and Iwasaki.
Both Pyle and Iwasaki were professors at Yale University and are investigators for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. They were considered pioneers in the field of immunology.
“We are very excited to make this investment in RIGImmune Inc., a company founded by two of the world’s leading scientists in innate immunity and RNA based therapies,” said Pranav Amin, MD of Alembic.
“Apart from pursuing internal projects, we believe we can accelerate our efforts by making strategic investments in companies that are leaders in their field and this investment
marks the beginning for us,” Amin said.
“We are delighted to have Alembic, a global pharmaceutical development firm, as a major participant in the seed financing round for RIGImmune,” said Martin Driscoll, Chairman of the Board of Directors for RIGImmune.
“We look forward to working with the Alembic team as we advance our novel stem loop RNA therapeutics as potential treatments for patients suffering from viral diseases and cancer,” Driscoll said.
