The startup, born from research at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), has closed an 8 million euro investment round subscribed to by Claris Ventures Sgr and CDP Venture Capital Sgr, enabling the initiation of human trials for a potential innovative treatment
IAMA Therapeutics, a new startup founded on the research activities of the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) and active in the development of innovative therapeutic approaches in the field of neurodevelopmental disorders, has completed an 8 million euro financing round with the support of Claris Ventures Sgr and CDP Venture Capital Sgr through its Evoluzione Fund.
With the resources obtained, the fledgling company aims to initiate clinical trials for a new potential drug candidate, named IAMA-6, over the next 24 months. This candidate drug is expected to enhance the quality of life for individuals with neurodevelopmental issues, such as conditions on the autism spectrum, by improving social behaviors and reducing cognitive deficits.
In particular, the startup will focus its trials on the selective inhibitor of the NKCC1 protein, which has already shown promising preclinical evidence in treating symptoms related to Down syndrome, autism spectrum conditions, epilepsy, and some orphan and rare neurodevelopmental diseases. Additionally, IAMA Therapeutics will continue the preclinical development of other drug candidates for different therapeutic indications that are currently under study and evaluation.
The startup originates from the decade-long experience of the Brain Development and Disease and Molecular Modeling and Drug Discovery research groups at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Genoa, led by Laura Cancedda and Marco De Vivo, respectively. The team’s work, directed by the two researchers and supported by Fondazione Telethon, resulted in the first results being published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine in 2015. Subsequent research efforts led to the discovery of the new drug candidate, which was featured in another important publication in Chem in 2020. Due to its unique qualities, IAMA-6 has been protected by a patent, with the Italian Institute of Technology, Fondazione Telethon, the University of Genoa, and the University of Bologna involved in the patenting process.
IAMA Therapeutics will be introduced for the first time today at the Community Life Sciences 2022 event, organized by “The European House Ambrosetti” and IIT on the enhancement of research in life sciences and technology transfer. At the event, the latest four startups in life technologies founded by IIT over the past year will be presented.
Iama Therapeutics will be led by Andrea Patricelli Malizia, a manager with a scientific and business background and prior experience as a researcher at Harvard Medical School and as a group leader in the Biologic Drug Discovery team at Biogen (USA). Following the investment, Ciro Spedaliere (founding partner of Claris Ventures) and Mario Scuderi (managing partner of CDP) will join the company’s board of directors.
“In the field of neurodevelopment, there are very few effective compounds,” says Laura Cancedda, “and even fewer that reach advanced stages of development to become drugs.” “We are excited,” she adds, “to see how the research work that started several years ago on the function and inhibition of the NKCC1 protein has laid a solid foundation for the development of a new potential therapy for the treatment of various neurological disorders.”
“We worked together to guide our potential drug through all stages of pre-clinical studies,” comments Marco De Vivo, “These new and promising molecules have been optimized and extensively studied in our laboratories, with astonishing results. The significant interest from such high-level investors is also a testament to the multidisciplinarity of IIT that played a winning card in the case of IAMA-6,” concludes De Vivo.
Ciro Spedaliere, Founding Partner of Claris Ventures, commented: “We are excited to support internationally renowned Italian scientists and work together to fully realize the translational potential of their scientific discoveries.” “At Claris,” he adds, “we have had this mission from the beginning: to provide capital and support to teams like IAMA’s that are determined to see the clinical impact of their research.”
“We are pleased to support IAMA Therapeutics in an ambitious project with high potential for improving the quality of life for patients who currently have limited therapeutic options,” said Enrico Resmini, CEO and General Manager of CDP Venture Capital Sgr. “This operation fully demonstrates the value of entrepreneurship applied to scientific research.”
“IAMA is the fourth startup launched by IIT in the Life Sciences in less than a year and is a living example of the quality of the Italian technology transfer ecosystem,” says Matteo Bonfanti, Director of Technology Transfer at IIT. “When world-class research institutions (such as IIT and Telethon) team up with venture capitalists specializing in tech transfer, the results are startups with skills, numbers, and ambitions that are second to none in other European and U.S. scenarios.”
“We welcome the launch of IAMA Therapeutics with great satisfaction,” said Francesca Pasinelli, CEO of the Telethon Foundation. “This startup is based on an innovative research line that has been selected and funded by the Telethon Foundation from the very beginning. In line with our goal of promoting the development of the science we invest in, in addition to financing the project, we have supported the researchers throughout the technology transfer process, together with IIT. Now, this promising project has access to the resources and expertise needed to embark on the long and expensive path to a therapy available to patients. It is a brilliant example of synergy that maximizes the impact of scientific research.”
For CDP Venture Capital Sgr, the operation was followed by Mario Scuderi and Rebecca D’Aloja, co-responsible and analyst of the Evoluzione Fund.
