miRNA specialist Resalis Therapeutics Srl raises €10m in Series A financing

Existing investors including Claris Ventures and angel investors participated in the financing The proceeds will be used to initiate and complete the first-in-human Phase I  trial and reach Phase II readiness for Resalis’ lead program, RES-010, in obesity.

RES-010 is a non-coding locked anti miRNA22 antisende-RNA designed to provide a disease-modifying approach in obesity with longer-lasting weight reduction and the ability to extend treatment durability in combination with approved therapeutics, such as GLP-1 receptor agonists and incretin boosters. Ablation of miRNA-22 protects against obesity-induced adipocyte senescence and ameliorates metabolic disorders in middle-aged mice. In tranferring white adipocytes into brown adipocytes, miRNA-22 deletion limits white adipose expansion and attenuates high-fat diet-induced fat mass accumulation prividing a potenmtially more durable effect than incretin agonists.

“Preserving muscle mass is key to provide a sustained and meaningful clinical benefit, and we share Resalis’ vision that this non-GLP1/GIP therapeutic will significantly improve both effect and tolerability of today’s therapies,” said Claus Andersson, General Partner at Sunstone Life Science Ventures, who will enter the Board of Directors.

Resalis lead candidate, RES-010, is an antisense oligonucleotide that targets miR-22, a central player in the regulation of lipid metabolism and energy consumption. In multiple proof-of-concept studies in large and small animal models, RES-010 has shown the potential to provide a safe and longer-lasting therapeutic effect, alone or in combination with approved drugs. Resalis plans to initiate a Phase I clinical study evaluating the safety and efficacy of RES-010 in the first half of 2024. RES-010 is patent-protected in the US, Japan and China with patents pending in the EU.  RES-010 will be also developed to reduce hepatic steatosis. Building on robust preclinical evidence, Resalis will rapidly bring RES-010 into clinical trials for a range of metabolic disorders.