Epigenic Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on epigenetic medicine, announced the completion of a $60 million Series B financing round led by Lapam Capital. The funding includes continued participation from existing investors Qiming Venture Partners and OrbiMed, along with new investors IFSC and an unnamed industry investment firm.
The financing will primarily support ongoing clinical development of two lead programs: EPI-003 for chronic hepatitis B functional cure and EPI-001 for hypercholesterolemia treatment. Additional funds will accelerate multiple preclinical programs and strengthen the company's technology platforms.
Revolutionary Epigenetic Approach
Founded in 2021, Epigenic has positioned itself as a pioneer in next-generation gene modulation therapy utilizing epigenome regulation. The company's proprietary EPIREG™ technology platform enables efficient, durable, and specific silencing of target genes through precise DNA methylation and histone modification.
"Unlike traditional gene-editing tools that rely on DNA cleavage, EPIREG™ offers a safer and revolutionary therapeutic approach for patients with chronic diseases, effectively mitigating safety concerns associated with conventional gene editing," according to the company's announcement.
Comprehensive Technology Portfolio
Epigenic has developed a suite of complementary platforms to support its epigenetic medicine approach. The EpiTax™ in-vivo LNP delivery platform enables precise delivery of EPIREG™ tools to the liver and multiple extrahepatic organs, expanding the application scope across broader disease areas.
The company's AIAID™ platform leverages artificial intelligence for molecular design, target selection, and precise modulation of epigenetic medicines. This platform features a self-developed foundational model for epigenetics and includes a multi-agent collaborative virtual lab that autonomously performs target discovery, accessibility prediction, sgRNA design and evaluation, virtual epigenetic modulation, and multi-omics analysis.
Leadership Perspectives
"Since our inception, we have remained focused on advancing epigenetic modulation technologies and have achieved remarkable progress in just a few years," said Dr. Bob Zhang, Co-founder & CEO of Epigenic Therapeutics. "We will continue to drive the clinical development of our core pipelines to deliver safe and effective therapies to patients as soon as possible."
Zhihua Yu, Chairman of Lapam Capital, emphasized the investment rationale: "Epigenetic drug development is a highly promising field, and Epigenic has demonstrated outstanding technological advantages and growth potential. The combination of its EPIREG™ platform and EpiTax™ delivery system provides a unique solution for disease treatment."
Broad Therapeutic Pipeline
Beyond the two lead clinical programs, Epigenic maintains a diverse pipeline targeting multiple disease areas including metabolic, cardiovascular, viral hepatitis, ocular, and autoimmune diseases. The company's approach addresses prevalent diseases through epigenome regulation, representing a departure from traditional pharmaceutical development strategies.
The Series B funding positions Epigenic to advance its clinical programs while continuing to develop its proprietary technology platforms. With backing from established healthcare investors including OrbiMed, which manages over $17 billion in healthcare assets, and Qiming Venture Partners, which has invested in over 580 companies, Epigenic has secured significant financial support for its epigenetic medicine development efforts.
