STAT+: Gene-editing startup launches with $230 million and a Chinese licensing deal

Article excerpt

A new gene-editing startup has threaded the needle of negotiating contracts with a Chinese drug company, raising $230 million in funding, and executing a reverse merger with a preexisting biotech company.  The result? Serapha Bio, which launched Tuesday to develop a one-and-done treatment for a liver and lung disease called Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency, or AATD, founding investors RA Capital and RTW Investments told STAT exclusively.  RA and RTW arranged $138 million in Series A funding for Serapha, along with $92 million in additional funds tied to the company’s reverse merger with Boundless Bio. Boundless Bio launched in 2019 to study extrachromosomal DNA and its role in cancer growth but ran into trouble with its lead program. Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…