Humane Genomics, a NYC-based developer of precision-designed therapies, raised an undisclosed amount in Seed funding.
The round was led by Union Square Ventures.
The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its development efforts.
Led by Peter Weijmarshausen, CEO, Chad Moles, and Andrew Hessel, Humane Genomics is developing a platform to engineer cancer killing viruses with specificity and efficiency.
The company’s approach synthesizes DNA (DNA synthesis is a process very similar to 3D printing, since you turn a computer file into a physical product) to construct RNA viruses with what they call 2-factor authentication. In simpler terms, they design viruses to infect only cancer cells (selective infection) and then replicate only within those cells (selective replication), sparing healthy cells.
Its first target is pediatric liver cancer. Working closely with Texas Children’s Hospital, they have developed an oncolytic virus that shows the ability to quickly kill cancer cells and leave healthy cells alone. To get its first therapy into trials requires GMP manufacturing and preclinical animal tests.
FinSMEs
18/02/2025