Novartis’ $3.2 billion deal for Chinook Therapeutics gave the Swiss Big Pharma such a taste for kidney disease-focused biotechs that it has partnered with VC firm Versant Ventures to create another company in a similar mold.
Borealis Biosciences, which emerged from stealth today armed with $150 million in series A funds, has been created around a focus on “many key members of Chinook’s Vancouver-based research team,” according to Versant, which also founded Chinook.
Borealis, which was jointly launched by Novartis and Versant, is working on next-generation RNA medicines for kidney disease, with the aim of harnessing recent industry breakthroughs like “an improved understanding of patient stratification, genetically defined targets, requirements for delivery of therapeutic payloads to specific kidney cell types, and RNA chemistry advancements,” according to an Aug. 22 release.
As well as the significant starter funds, Borealis is also stepping into the spotlight complete with $100 million in upfront and near-term cash from a licensing deal with the Big Pharma that “complements Novartis’ priorities in renal medicine and xRNA technology platform innovation," according to the release.
Under the deal, Borealis will be in line for up to $750 million in milestone payments should Novartis take up its option of acquiring two development-ready programs from the biotech and continuing their journey to regulators.
“Novartis is committed to bringing forward new therapeutic options for patients with kidney diseases,” Fiona Marshall, President of Biomedical Research at Novartis, said in the release.
“We believe Borealis will foster an ideal environment for an exceptional founding team to continue to pioneer renal science and drug discovery, and we are delighted to work with Versant on a partnership that exemplifies creative, collaborative dealmaking to enable the launch of this innovative biotech,” Marshall added.
Borealis’ 25-person team will be based at a 23,000-square-foot operating site in Vancouver that was previously leased by Chinook. Versant said the biotech’s employees comprise “experienced drug hunters with extensive expertise in kidney disease, translational systems biology and data sciences, translational biology, chemistry, DMPK and pharmacology.”
“Despite recent advances for patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN), many other forms of highly prevalent kidney disease remain unaddressed,” Versant said in the release. “The understanding of patient subpopulations and distinct underlying pathologies has improved significantly in recent years, but some of the most validated, causal targets have not been amenable to traditional small molecule or biologic modalities.”
It’s perhaps unsurprising that both Novartis and Versant want to repeat the success of Chinook. It only took a few months after the Big Pharma’s acquisition for Chinook’s oral endothelin A receptor antagonist atrasentan to demonstrate its value by significantly improving proteinuria in a phase 3 study in patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN).
Another IgAN asset from Chinook, called zigakibart, is also in phase 3 development at Novartis.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Novartis' own iptacopan scored FDA approval in IgAN. That drug, marketed as Fabhalta, gained its original FDA nod in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria late last year.