With new financing in its pocket, a Flagship Pioneering-backed cell therapy startup is ready to begin its first in-human tests of a rare disease treatment.
Sigilon Therapeutics raised a $80.3 million Series B round this week from BlackRock-managed funds, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, the Longevity Vision Fund and others. The startup, which was founded by noted MIT scientists Bob Langer and Daniel Anderson, will use the money to push its first drug candidate into a clinical trial by mid-year.
While Sigilon has signed a $410 million deal with drug giant Eli Lilly & Company (NYSE: LLY) to develop a diabetes treatment, its first clinical trial will test a therapy for the rare blood disorder hemophilia A. The genetic blood disorder prevents the blood from clotting normally, sometimes leading to severe blood loss.
Sigilon’s approach involves engineering cells to produce high levels of various proteins to address the disease. Because the cells are enclosed in a special biomaterial, Sigilon believes the treatment could work over an extended period, alleviating the need for repeated injections or pills.
