26 March 2020 - - US-based biopharmaceutical company ReCode Therapeutics, which is developing precision medicines for pulmonary diseases, has closed an oversubscribed USD 80m series A financing round, the company said.

OrbiMed Advisors LLC and Colt Ventures co-led the round, with participation from MPM Capital, Vida Ventures LLC, Hunt Technology Ventures, L.P. and Osage University Partners.

ReCode will use the proceeds to continue the preclinical development of its lead programs in primary ciliary dyskinesia and cystic fibrosis.

The company expects to file an Investigational New Drug Application for both programs in 2021.

In addition, the company will advance its proprietary non-viral lipid nanoparticle delivery platform for organ-specific delivery of RNA therapies and gene editing components.

Along with the financing, ReCode has appointed a new board of directors.

The directors comprise representatives from the company including Dr. David Lockhart and key investors including Dr. Peter Thompson, partner at OrbiMed, Ed Hurwitz, J.D., managing director at MPM Capital, Helen S. Kim, managing director at Vida Ventures, R.A. Session II, chief business officer of the gene therapy subsidiaries at BridgeBio, and ReCode founder and new vice president of R and D, Dr. Michael Torres.

Chardan acted as sole placement agent on the series A financing, and as M and A advisor to ReCode Therapeutics.

ReCode Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing precision medicines for genetic respiratory diseases with significant unmet medical need. ReCode's diverse pipeline includes lead programs for primary ciliary dyskinesia and nonsense mutations in cystic fibrosis.

The company's proprietary non-viral lipid nanoparticle platform enables the delivery of a variety of payloads, and precise organ targeting of nucleic acid and protein payloads via both systemic and local delivery.

ReCode is leveraging its nanoparticle and nucleic acid technologies across multiple modalities, including mRNA-mediated protein replacement therapies, first-in-class tRNA NanoCorrectors for diseases caused by nonsense mutations, and gene editing.

OrbiMed is a leading healthcare investment firm, with over USD 14bn in assets under management. OrbiMed invests globally across the healthcare industry, from start-ups to large multinational corporations, utilising a range of private equity funds, public equity funds, and royalty/credit funds.
OrbiMed maintains offices in New York City, San Francisco, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Mumbai and Herzliya. OrbiMed seeks to be a capital provider of choice, providing tailored financing solutions and global team resources and support to help build world-class healthcare companies.

Colt Ventures is a family office that was established in 2003 to invest the capital of Darren Blanton.

Colt invests in a range of private and public companies, and has deep domain expertise in biotechnology and energy. Dr. Sundeep Agrawal leads the firm's investment activities with a focus on biotechnology/therapeutics.