Purespring Therapeutics, a pioneering gene therapy company focused on transforming the treatment of kidney diseases, today announces it has raised £80 million in Series B financing. The oversubscribed round was financed by an international syndicate including Gilde Healthcare, Sofinnova Partners, Forbion, British Patient Capital, and founding investor Syncona Limited.
Purespring is the first company to successfully treat kidney disease models by directly targeting the podocyte, a specialised cell implicated in approximately 60% of renal diseases, through its proprietary adeno-associated viral (AAV) gene therapy platform. The Company currently has a pipeline of programmes in development. This includes its lead programme PS-002, in development for IgA Nephropathy (IgAN), and other complement mediated kidney diseases, a programme targeting nephrotic syndrome, and an undisclosed glomerular kidney disease programme.
Purespring’s platform technology allows working copies of genes to be delivered with high efficiency and specificity to podocytes, opening up a new and highly differentiated modality for disease modifying treatments of a broad range of kidney diseases.
Proceeds will be used to support Purespring’s pipeline including the initiation of a Phase I/II clinical trial for IgAN, a common, chronic kidney disease primarily affecting young adults. About one third of IgAN patients will go on to lose their kidney function within five years and require a kidney transplant or dialysis.
Sonia Hallen PhD, Investment Manager at Gilde Healthcare, said: “Purespring’s podocyte-targeted platform takes a unique approach to gene therapy. In this setting, we anticipate the modality to be highly transferable to a vast group of underserved patients with life-long, devastating kidney diseases. I am delighted to join the board and begin supporting the Company to deliver better care to patients in need.”
Julian Hanak, Purespring’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Nearly one tenth of the world’s population, around 840 million people, suffer from chronic kidney disease. For many of them, there are few options beyond dialysis and transplantation. Our novel treatment platform and deep understanding of kidney disease puts us in a position to stop, reverse and even cure kidney disease. The funds raised will allow us to bring our novel treatments to patients in the clinic.
“I’m really pleased to be able to welcome such a high-quality investor syndicate to support Purespring on this journey. Having sophisticated, experienced and committed investors on board, who understand drug development and the urgency of bringing these much-needed therapies to patients will maximise the opportunities for the company and the patients we treat.”
The financing follows critical scientific milestones for Purespring. Earlier this year, Purespring presented preclinical data at the 61st European Renal Association (ERA) Congress establishing the potential of AAV gene therapy to deliver transgenes to the podocyte to replace defective genes or to modulate protein production, underpinning the potential of AAV as an important novel modality to treat a broad range of kidney disease.
In 2023, a paper published in Science Translational Medicine demonstrated that Purespring had successfully used AAV gene therapy to transduce the podocyte in vivo for the first time – a major milestone in overcoming the hurdles which have previously limited development in this area.
Purespring will present its IgAN data publicly for the first time at the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) Kidney Week congress on October 26 in San Diego (abstract #SA-OR63).
About Purespring
Purespring is developing gene therapies to halt or prevent kidney disease, one of humankind’s most poorly treated disease areas.
Founded on the work of Professor Moin Saleem, Professor of Paediatric Renal Medicine at the University of Bristol, Purespring is the first company to successfully treat kidney disease by targeting the podocyte, a specialised cell that is implicated in the majority of renal disease. Purespring’s platform approach enables streamlined gene therapy development for both monogenic and non-monogenic renal diseases, offering the potential to halt, reverse and even cure both rare and common kidney diseases.
The Company currently has a pipeline of programmes in development including the lead asset for treatment of IgA Nephropathy (IgAN) and other complement mediated kidney disease. The Company also has programmes for diseases caused by mutations in the gene NPHS2, as well as other monogenic glomerular kidney diseases.
Based in London, the Purespring team combines world-leading expertise in podocyte biology and kidney disease with a wealth of experience in gene therapies, anchored in a culture of diversity, creativity and delivery.
Purespring is backed by leading biotech investors, including Syncona Limited, Sofinnova Partners, Gilde Healthcare, Forbion, and British Patient Capital and has raised £115M to date. For more information please visit: purespringtx.com and follow us on LinkedIn.
About Gilde Healthcare
Gilde Healthcare is a specialized healthcare investor managing €2.6 billion across two fund strategies: Venture&Growth and Private Equity. The Venture&Growth fund of Gilde Healthcare invests in fast growing companies active in therapeutics, medtech and digital health, based in Europe and North America. The Private Equity fund of Gilde Healthcare participates in profitable lower mid-market healthcare companies based in North-Western Europe. For more information, visit the company’s website at www.gildehealthcare.com
