Medicines Discovery Catapult Backs Two U.K. Biotech Companies Tackling Chronic Diseases

Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) invested in two U.K. biotechs developing new  approaches to treating diseases such as psoriasis. Parkinson’s Flip Therapeutics and Nascent Therapeutics will each receive £500,000 in funding made available by Innovate UK as part of a scheme that enabled Catapult to invest in high-potential companies.

Alongside the investment, MDC officials said they will provide the companies with translational drug discovery expertise and access to its network of advisors and partners.

Flip Therapeutics is developing a new method designed to program T cells directly in the body to generate long-lasting, controlled immune function in patients with chronic autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, such as alopecia areata and psoriasis. These diseases represent a significant burden for patients and healthcare systems, affecting an estimated one in 10 people in the U.K.

When there is an imbalance between specific T cell subtypes, it can cause inflammation, which results in damage to healthy tissue. Flip’s platform is based on the premise that disease-driving T cells can be reprogrammed in vivo, flipping them into anti-inflammatory cells that could restore balance and resolve inflammation for the long term.

This strategy both reduces the number of local disease-causing cells and rebuilds protective immune cells where they are needed most, opening the potential for a new class of immune medicines, noted David Pajerowski, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Flip Therapeutics.

“This combination of financial support and access to expertise gives us the opportunity to execute the experiments that matter most at this stage: validating our payloads, integrating them with nanoparticle delivery technology, and demonstrating that in vivo T cell reprogramming can become a scalable therapeutic platform,” he continued.

Mitochondrial biology for neurodegenerative diseases

Nascent Therapeutics, a University of East Anglia spinout, is using mitochondrial biology to treat neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, and other age-related conditions, such as COPD and osteoporosis. MDC is a co-investor alongside Zinc, a venture capital firm.

As mitochondrial function declines with age, cells become less resilient, accumulate damage and struggle to meet energy demands, contributing to ageing and disease development.

Nascent is building a platform to regulate mitochondrial transfer using tunneling nanotube formation, the biological process through which cells exchange mitochondria and other cellular components in a controlled manner. A growing body of evidence suggests this process may have a fundamental role in aging and the pathology of diseases, including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, pointed out Stuart Wood, co-founder and CEO of Nascent Therapeutics.

Wood also explained that through its approach of boosting and restoring mitochondrial transfer, Nascent aims to develop a new class of disease-modifying therapies to address a significant unmet patient need, initially focused on Parkinson’s disease.

“MDC have been highly supportive and engaged investors from the outset,” he said. “With this funding, we will develop our pipeline and platform as we work to develop truly novel therapies for Parkinson’s and other aging diseases, and we look forward to continuing to work with MDC as both investors and scientific partners.”

“By combining exciting science with the right support, we can help accelerate the journey towards new treatments for the patients who need them,” commented Mike Strange, PhD, interim CEO of MDC. “The funding from Innovate UK enables us to back Flip Therapeutics and Nascent Therapeutics in developing innovative approaches to tackling diseases that affect so many people.”