Research Bridge Partners' Seed Capital Investment in Asalyxa Bio Advances Dr. Lola Eniola-Adefeso's Immune Cell Targeted Therapeutic Platform
-- University of Michigan BioInterfaces Institute spinout has developed a technology to treat a wide range of life-threatening inflammatory diseases, including Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)--
AUSTIN, Texas, March 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Research Bridge Partners – a 501 (c) (3) organization that bridges preeminent innovators at mid-continent research universities with the commercialization resources of Silicon Valley— announced a seed capital investment in Asalyxa Bio, a University of Michigan spinout that has developed a drug-delivery technology to treat a wide range of inflammatory diseases. The company also announced the designation of Dr. Lola Eniola-Adefeso, Asalyxa Bio's Chief Scientific Officer, as Research Bridge Partners Fellow.
Research Bridge Partners' program-related investment will help the company fund development of core technologies and intellectual property, while supporting IND-enabling studies required to obtain the permission of regulatory authorities to begin human clinical testing. With this investment, James Graham, Research Bridge Partners Managing Director of Investments, has joined the company's board of directors.
Asalyxa Bio's lead program, ASX-100, delivers an anti-inflammatory agent directly to overreactive neutrophils—a long-ignored white blood cell that may be implicated in the immune system overreaction known as a "cytokine storm."
Dr. Eniola-Adefeso, the University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Michigan, explains: "Neutrophils are the most common, yet least glamorous white blood cells. Their lack of specialization makes them good 'first responders' in the body when something is wrong, but trouble comes when they don't get the signal to stop responding so other cells can step in and repair the damage. ASX-100 has the potential to manage that response."
The company's first indication is in ARDS—a condition that affects 500,000 Americans annually, roughly half of whom die as a result. There are no approved drugs for ARDS, which is a leading cause of death from influenza and SARS-CoV-2 (Covid.)
"Asalyxa's technology has true life-saving potential," said Graham, "and a clear mechanism of action that will help accelerate program development and commercialization."
"We are excited to work with James and the team at RBP to advance this research to clinical studies and, ultimately, into medical practice," said Dr. Eniola-Adefeso
About Research Bridge Partners
Research Bridge Partners, a 501 (c) (3) organization, enhances the societal and economic impacts of America's research universities by bridging preeminent innovators at mid-continent institutions with the commercialization resources of Silicon Valley. Founded by Isaac Barchas and Reid Hoffman, Research Bridge Partners uses proprietary data analytics to identify the nation's leading researchers and translational philanthropy to transform their scientific breakthroughs into investible companies for the benefit of people everywhere. www.researchbridgepartners.org
About Asalyxa Bio
Asalyxa Bio is a drug development and platform technology company focused on novel therapeutics to treat major unmet medical needs caused by the dysregulation of immune signaling. With applications across a wide array of disease areas and conditions, Asalyxa Bio's platform technology enables delivery of existing and novel drugs directly into over-reactive immune cells. https://www.asalyxabio.com
SOURCE Research Bridge Partners
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