Eli Lilly, MRL Ventures Fund and Leaps by Bayer were among the participants in a round disclosed as the gastrointestinal disorder drug developer launched.

US-based autoimmune and inflammatory disease drug developer Mozart Therapeutics publicly launched yesterday with $55m in series A funding from investors including pharmaceutical producers Bayer, Eli Lilly and Merck & Co.

Arch Venture Partners led the round, which also featured fellow venture capital firms Sofinnova Partners and Altitude Life Science Ventures as well as Alexandria Venture Investments, participating on behalf of life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities.

Merck and Bayer participated in the round through MRL Ventures…