Augustine Therapeutics funding news – Leuven-based Augustine Therapeutics NV Secures €78 Million in Series A Round Funding

The funding round was co-led by Novo Holdings and Jeito Capital, with support from existing investors such as Asabys Partners, Eli Lilly, AdBio Partners, V-Bio Ventures, PMV, VIB, Gemma Frisius Fund, the Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) Research Foundation, and Newton Biocapital.

The company focuses on HDAC6, an enzyme linked to neurodegeneration and aging. Augustine has developed a new approach to target HDAC6, selectively inhibiting it while keeping its helpful functions intact. This approach shows promise for treating several diseases.

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Augustine has developed a new approach to target HDAC6 that avoids the problems of previous methods. This approach shows great potential for treating Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT), the most common genetic disorder affecting the peripheral nervous system, which impacts about three million people worldwide.

In addition, Augustine is working on other programs focused on molecules that can target the brain or stay in specific areas of the body. These new treatments could help with various diseases, including neurodegenerative and cardio-metabolic disorders.

The company’s research is based on the work of Prof. Ludo Van Den Bosch from the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain and Disease Research, who discovered that inhibiting HDAC6 could be an effective treatment for CMT and other nerve-related diseases.

Recently, Gerhard Koenig, PhD, who has been with Augustine since June 2024 as Executive Chairman, will become the company’s CEO in January 2025.

The funds from this investment will help move Augustine’s lead treatment, AGT-100216, into a Phase I/II clinical trial for CMT. Augustine is also working on two other programs aimed at treating neurodegenerative and cardio-metabolic diseases.

Gerhard Koenig, PhD, CEO of Augustine said: “This significant financing is a testament to the innovative medicinal chemistry that Augustine was founded on, which acts via a unique mechanism of action. The therapeutic potential of HDAC6 is widely recognized in our industry, but previous drug approaches have been sub-optimal, particularly for chronic diseases. At Augustine, we believe we have solved these challenges with a novel non-hydroxamate, non-hydrazide producing chemotype which is highly selective and avoids the typical limitations of prior chemotypes, unlocking HDAC6 inhibition as a therapeutic approach. We now look forward to rapidly advancing our lead candidate into clinical trials for the treatment of CMT, while broadening the potential for our candidates to change treatment paradigms for neurological and cardio-metabolic diseases. I would like to thank our new and existing investors for their unwavering support as we continue to advance into clinical development.”

Emmanuelle Coutanceau, PhD, Partner, Seed Investments, Novo Holdings, commented: “Our mapping of the HDAC6i landscape has made us confident that Augustine’s innovative and rigorous approach to medicinal chemistry has yielded molecules with potential to be best-in-class. HDAC6 inhibition shows great promise in many indications, and we are enthused to start our collaboration with Augustine’s top-tier management team. Additionally, Augustine will be expanding its activities in Denmark, accessing a unique ecosystem and pool of talent which will support the exploration of HDAC6i in cardio-metabolic diseases.”

Mehdi Ainouche, PharmD, Senior Principal, at Jeito Capital, said: “This investment illustrates the potential of Augustine to bring exciting innovation in therapeutic areas where patients have limited or no treatment options. We are delighted to co-lead this financing to realize Augustine’s potential, which stands out for both the quality of its research and the expertise of Gerhard and his team. We look forward to our future collaboration which shares a common ambition: to accelerate clinical development in order to bring these innovations to patients.”

About Augustine Therapeutics

Augustine Therapeutics is a biotech company focused on treating neuromuscular neurodegenerative and cardio-metabolic diseases. They use a new approach to selectively target the HDAC6 enzyme while keeping its helpful functions intact. The company’s main treatment, AGT-100216, is the first selective HDAC6 inhibitor for long-term treatment of Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease.