The developer of epigenetic medicine, based on Whitehead Institute research, pulled in funding through a round led by founding investor Flagship Pioneering.
Omega Therapeutics, a US-based epigenetic medicine developer utilising research from Whitehead Institute, closed its series C round at $126m on Tuesday.
Company builder and venture capital firm Flagship Pioneering led the round, which also featured investment and financial services firm, Fidelity, Invus, Cowen, Point72, Logos Capital, Mirae Asset Capital, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and undisclosed new and existing investors.
Omega was founded in 2017 by Flagship Pioneering and is developing treatments for medical conditions such as lung cancer, inflammatory diseases, alopaecia and covid-19.
The company’s epigenomic programming platform can modulate insulated genomic domains (IGDs): structures connected to DNA that regulate the human genome.
Omega has identified about 15,000 IGDs as potential targets for its medicines, which are known as epigenomic controllers. It exploits research conducted by Rick Young, a biology professor from the Whitehead Institute at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The funding will support the development of the company’s lead epigenomic controller candidate, OTX-2002, as well as other therapeutic candidates in its pipeline. It had previously received $85m from undisclosed investors in July 2020.