Scribe Therapeutics Files for IPO to Advance Gene Editing Pipeline for Cardiometabolic Disorders
Key Insights
Scribe Therapeutics (search) has filed with the SEC to go public on Nasdaq under the ticker "SCTX," joining a growing wave of biotech IPOs in 2026.
The company's lead candidate STX-1150, an epigenetic silencing therapy targeting PCSK9 for hypercholesterolemia (search), entered the clinic last month as a single-dose alternative to statins and PCSK9 inhibitors.
Scribe has secured $120 million in venture backing and over $25 million in grant funding from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
Scribe Therapeutics (search), a California-based biotechnology company developing genetic medicines for cardiometabolic disorders, has filed plans for an initial public offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company intends to list on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol "SCTX," positioning itself to become the 14th venture-backed biotech to price an IPO in 2026.
The IPO filing comes at a pivotal moment for Scribe, as its lead candidate STX-1150 — a treatment for high cholesterol — entered the clinic just last month. The company's approach leverages epigenetic silencing technology, which offers a mechanism to switch off certain genes without permanently altering DNA.
A New Approach to Cholesterol Management
STX-1150 targets PCSK9, a protein that regulates levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. Unlike existing therapies such as daily statin pills or quarterly injections like Amgen's Repatha and Sanofi/Regeneron's Praluent, Scribe's candidate is designed to be administered as a single dose.
Scribe CEO Benjamin Oakes, a former researcher under Nobel laureate and company co-founder Jennifer Doudna, has characterized CRISPR gene editing as a "more elegant" approach to genetic medicines. "Large pharma is recognizing that this has the potential to be the future of medicine," Oakes told BioPharma Dive in a 2023 interview.
The company's hypothesis is that its epigenetic silencing technology could prove more effective than existing hypercholesterolemia (search) medicines, including both statins and PCSK9 inhibitors.
Financial Backing and Grant Support
To date, Scribe has banked $120 million from venture backers including Andreessen Horowitz, Avoro Ventures, and OrbiMed. Last month, the company also announced it had received more than $25 million in grant funding from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. These funds are designated to advance a treatment for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (search) and a second drug targeting acute pancreatitis (search) in triglyceride-driven diseases.
Strategic Partnerships with Major Pharma
Since its launch in 2020, Scribe has forged collaborations with several pharmaceutical giants. The company's partnership with Biogen, focused on developing a treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (search) (ALS), was announced shortly after Scribe's founding and has since been expanded to include a second, unnamed gene therapy target.
A second research and development deal with Sanofi provided Scribe with $25 million upfront to access its gene editing platform for developing new cancer treatments based on natural killer cells. Sanofi expanded this partnership further in 2023, paying an additional $40 million initially with the goal of developing in vivo gene therapies.
The collaboration with Eli Lilly's subsidiary Prevail Medicines, aimed at discovering gene editing treatments for neurological conditions, has already achieved two milestone achievements. These milestones make Scribe eligible for two unspecified payments under an agreement worth up to $1.5 billion.
A Favorable IPO Window
If successful, Scribe would follow fellow cardiometabolic drugmaker Kardigan, which raised $400 million in its June IPO. The year 2026 has already produced two of the largest biotech offerings ever, signaling a receptive public market for innovative drug developers.