Pretzel Therapeutics Starts Off With $72.5 Million To Modify Mitochondria

Pretzel Therapeutics has launched with a $72.5 million Series A financing to modulate the mitochondria and treat mitochondrial dysfunction, which plays a role in a number of rare and common diseases, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. The fledgling biotech is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, with research facilities in Gothenburg, Sweden. 

The Series A round was led by ARCH Venture Partners and Mubadala Capital, with participation from HealthCap, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Cambridge Enterprise, Angelina Ventures, GV, Invus, Eir Ventures, GU Ventures, and Karolinska Institutet Holding. 

Related article: New Mitochondrial Response Pathway May Advance Treatments for Inflammatory Diseases

Founded By Experts In Mitochondrial Biology

Pretzel’s founders include three leading academics in mitochondrial biology. Claes Gustafsson, MD, Ph.D., is a professor of medical biochemistry at the University of Gothenburg and an expert in mitochondrial gene expression. Michal Minczuk, Ph.D., leads the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit at the University of Cambridge and offers expertise in mitochondrial genome engineering. Nils-Göran Larsson, MD, Ph.D., is a professor of mitochondrial genetics at the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics at Karolinska Institute who has published over 150 articles on mitochondrial biology.

At the helm of Pretzel is Jay Parrish, Ph.D., a Venture Partner at ARCH and co-founder of ROME Therapeutics, a startup targeting the repeatome which connects the entire genome. Parrish also served as Vir Biotechnology’s Chief Business Officer and led the company through its IPO and approval of a COVID-19 antibody treatment, sotrovimab. 

Mitochondrial Biology Platform 

Dysfunctional mitochondria play a role in more than 50 diseases, with the most severe termed as mitochondrial diseases. Examples of mitochondrial diseases include Alper’s Disease, Leigh Syndrome, and MELAS. As the mitochondria’s main function is producing energy, the prognosis of mitochondrial diseases is generally poor. 

Mitochondrial dysfunction is also seen in diseases related to aging, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases. Even cancer and metabolic diseases may be indirectly caused by problems in the mitochondria. 

Pretzel’s platform will focus on gene correction, genome expression modulation, and mitochondrial quality control. The approach will utilize gene-editing tools to reduce mutated mitochondrial DNA and increase levels of healthy mitochondria. Genome modulation can be

achieved using small molecules that act on the enzymes involved in mitochondrial DNA replication, transcription, and translation. Small molecules can also be used to modulate the mitochondria’s built-in quality control system, which involves proteostasis, biogenesis, and mitophagy. 

Pretzel joins a handful of companies working in the mitochondrial space, including biopharmas Stealth BioTherapeutics and Khondrion. 

Author

Joy Lin

Without knowledge, there is no imagination. Without imagination, knowledge is meaningless