Affinia Therapeutics Closes $110 Million Financing Round

Gene therapy company Affinia Therapeutics has closed a $110 million Series B financing. Affinia Therapeutics will use the proceeds to further develop its proprietary gene therapy platform, advance programs into the clinic, and for general corporate purposes. “Since founding the company, we have had the interest of leading biotech investors as well as strategic partners who see the potential of our gene therapy discovery platform to engineer novel vectors that overcome the limitations of conventional serotypes,” said Rick Modi, chief executive officer of Affinia Therapeutics.

In 2020, Affinia Therapeutics announced a Series A financing and a multi-year research collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Earlier this year, the company announced it strengthened its leadership team with the appointment of Charles Albright, Ph.D., and Petra Kaufmann, M.D., who joined as chief scientific officer and chief medical officer from Editas Medicine and Novartis Gene Therapies, respectively. Last week, the Company announced the acceptance of abstracts for the upcoming virtual American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy annual meeting. The abstracts are focused on novel vectors with enhanced capabilities for central nervous system and muscle diseases, and improved manufacturing yields.

Founded in 2019, Affinia Therapeutics’ develops gene therapies for rare and non-rare diseases. The company’s proprietary platform enables it to engineer novel adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors and regulatory elements to make gene therapies with potentially improved tissue tropism, cell specificity, safety and yields, with an initial focus on central nervous system and muscle diseases with significant unmet need. The company recently expanded its state-of-the-art discovery laboratories in Waltham to add process science, analytical development, and manufacturing pilot plant capabilities as it advances its programs into the clinic.  (Source: Affinia Therapeutics Website, 03 May, 2021)