Citryll announced today\nthe first closing of a targeted \u20ac 15 million investment round, funded by\nModiQuest B.V., BOM Brabant Ventures, BrightGene, and Curie Capital. The\nproceeds will be used to progress the pre-clinical and clinical development of\nCitryll\u2019s tACPA antibodies, inhibitors of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs)\nand their formation (NETosis). tACPA interferes with the formation, function\nand clearance of NETs, but downstream of the peptidylarginine deiminase (PAD)\ndependant citrullination pathway. It does so by binding to N-terminal\ncitrullinated epitopes in histones that are essential for NET formation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe believe\nthat drugs that interfere with NETs and their production have the potential to\ncreate game changing new treatments to prevent or treat human diseases. tACPA\ntargets autoimmune and other diseases such as lupus, vasculitis, pulmonary\nfibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis and organ damage due to sepsis. Citryll\u2019s\napproach does not broadly target inflammation or acquired immunity, instead it\nextinguishes the source of autoantigens and (NET)-derived toxic molecules in\nthe safest way currently possible\u201d, says CEO Helmuth van Es.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe welcome the investment by this investor syndicate\nfrom the Netherlands and China, which will allow the development of Citryll\u2019s\nantibody therapeutic for patients with significant medical needs\u201d, says\nModiQuest CEO, co-inventor of tACPA, Jos Raats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are excited to be able to invest in Citryll as the company is an excellent example of a first in class therapeutic innovation that can have a strong impact on patients\u2019 lives. An increasing amount of scientific data shows that NET formation plays a crucial role across various disease types, therefore we look forward to support the further development of tACPA\u201d, says BOM Brabant Ventures Investment Manager Sjoerd van Gorp, speaking for the investor syndicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n