Rubedo Life Sciences Completes $40 Million Series A Funding Led by Khosla Ventures and Ahren Innovation Capital

SUNNYVALE, CALIF.–(Business Wire / Korea Newswire)–Rubedo Life Sciences, a biopharmaceutical company committed to developing first-in-class therapies targeting senescent cells that cause age-related diseases, today announced the closing of a $40 million series A financing round. The round was led by Khosla Ventures and Ahren Innovation Capital, with participation from Hevolution, R42, Modi Ventures, Cerigo Investments, Shanda Group, Refactor Capital, LongeVC, Italian Angels for Growth (IAG) and other investors.

The funding will be used to advance the company’s lead candidate, RLS-1496, in the areas of chronic atopic dermatitis and chronic psoriasis, which will enter Phase 1 studies. Rubedo is also developing complementary therapies that selectively target senescent cells in lung diseases with significant unmet medical need, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), with one program receiving a substantial CIRM grant last year.

“We are pleased to attract this top syndicate, co-led by Khosla Ventures and Ahren Innovation Capital. This significant influx of funding will enable us to advance our first clinical candidate into human studies,” said Marco Quarta, CEO and co-founder of Rubedo Life Sciences.

“As people live longer, improving quality of life is critical,” said Alex Morgan, partner at Khosla Ventures. “Rubedo focuses on aged or aging cells that cause age-related diseases. This first trial can bring us one step closer to achieving better health.”

“Our mission is to invest in transformational companies that will change the world for the better and serve major markets,” said Alice Newcombe Ellis, Founding & General Partner, Ahren Innovation Capital. “We believe Rubedo’s transformative approach to targeting senescent cells is an impressive step toward the development of chronic age-related therapies, which will advance biotechnology from treatment to prevention or disease reversal.”

“The significant experience and capital that our investors bring to Rubedo will help the company rapidly advance our programs,” said Ali Siam, Chief Business Officer of Rubedo Life Sciences. “We look forward to working with these leaders, whose vast experience in clinical development will be invaluable as we enter the next phase of growth at Rubedo.”

Rubedo’s Alembic™ drug discovery platform enables the identification of specific druggable targets for development into therapies that selectively target pathological cells, such as different types of senescent cells, that drive the process of biological aging. Senescence is the process in which a cell ages and permanently stops dividing, but does not die. Every cell has the potential to become outdated. Over time, large numbers of senescent cells can accumulate in tissues throughout the body and release pathological factors. When they reach a critical mass, they cause chronic inflammation and damage that lead to fibrosis and tissue degeneration, which cause many age-related diseases.

About Rubedo Life Sciences

Rubedo Life Sciences is a biopharmaceutical company developing a broad portfolio of innovative therapies designed to target cells that cause chronic age-related diseases. Our proprietary ALEMBIC™ drug discovery platform has developed novel first-in-class small molecules designed to selectively target different types of senescent cells, which play a key role in the progression of pulmonary, dermatological, oncological, neurodegenerative, fibrotic and other chronic conditions. Rubedo’s leadership team consists of industry leaders and early pioneers in chemistry, technology and life sciences, with expertise in drug development and commercialization from both major pharmaceutical and leading biotech companies. The company is based in Sunnyvale, CA. For more information, visit www.rubedolife.com.

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Website: https://www.rubedolife.com/

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