Orthogon Therapeutics Announces an $8M Follow-On Financing to Advance Its Lead BK Virus Drug

The Company is developing the first, orally available antiviral to treat one of the most common viral infections in pediatric and adult transplant patients

CANTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Orthogon Therapeutics LLC, a drug development company focused on designing innovative antivirals and anti-infective therapeutics, announced that it has raised an $8M round from a leading syndicate of US based healthcare Angels to advance its pipeline of first-in-class drug assets. This financing brings the total investment to date in the Company to $12.5M.

“Orthogon is committed to advancing the first orally administrable antiviral to treat BK virus infections,” said Dr. Ali H. Munawar, CEO of Orthogon Therapeutics and former founding CEO of Novira Therapeutics. “Our mission is to develop a safe and effective prophylactic and therapeutic option for transplant and immunocompromised patients at risk of developing BK virus associated complications and graft rejection. Through the diligent efforts of our scientists, we have optimized a safe and effective drug candidate that is ready for development.”

The new round of funding will propel the Company’s preclinical drug candidate towards pre-IND studies and expand its anti-infective discovery pipeline. Talking about the financing, Dr. Munawar said, “our investors share our vision to discovering and advancing revolutionary, first-in-class, medicines into the clinic”.

There are at present no viable therapeutic options for this family of viruses that causes severe complications in transplant and immunocompromised patients. Earlier this year, Roche obtained FDA-approval for the first diagnostic test to detect BK virus in the urine of patients.

About Orthogon Therapeutics

Orthogon Therapeutics is a privately held R&D company. Orthogon uses structure-based drug design and biophysics to successfully optimize drugs that bind selectively and safely neutralize target proteins that have been considered difficult to “drug”. The Company was founded by a veteran biotech entrepreneur and experienced drug discovery scientists with a mission to prolong and improve patient quality of life.

About BK and polyomaviruses

BK virus (BKV) is a kidney tropic member of the polyomavirus family which also includes JC and Merkel cell polyomaviruses that also cause life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients. BK virus is a ubiquitous, virus which latently infects over 80% of the adult population and is reactivated under conditions of immunosuppression in solid organ and stem cell transplant patients. For kidney transplant patients it is the most common viral infection, threatening graft function and causing associated nephropathy and hemorrhagic cystitis among other complications.