Gene therapy developer Limelight Bio grew from research at University of Pennsylvania and has landed $75m in its first publicly-disclosed round.
Limelight Bio, a US-based gene editing platform and therapy developer founded on University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) research, secured $75m yesterday in a round led by life sciences-focused VC firm Apple Tree Partners.
Founded in 2017, Limelight Bio is developing gene-based therapeutics for indications unaddressed by existing drugs, including severe genetic disorders affecting the ear, retina, blood and metabolism.
The company has already identified multiple drug candidates using its gene-editing technology, which it claims can remedy larger genetic defects while avoiding damage to the patient’s overall genomic composition.
Limelight Bio’s founding team includes Jean Bennett, director of UPenn’s Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, and Phil Johnson, former chief scientific officer at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Bennett said: “There is great potential for Limelight’s technology to transform gene therapy far beyond where it is today.
“With these advanced tools and technologies, we now have the means to go straight to the origin of the most complex genetic diseases. It could become the foundation for a new class of medicines.”
A regulatory filing indicates Limelight Bio secured $14m of a targeted $50m round in August 2019, however this may have formed part of the latest announcement.
