Participated · Series A · Oct 2023

LyGenesis is a clinical-stage biotechnology company based in Pittsburgh, PA that develops cell therapies which use patients' lymph nodes as bioreactors to regenerate functioning ectopic organs. Its lead allogeneic cell therapy program is in a Phase 2a clinical trial for patients with end-stage liver disease (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04496479). The company's pipeline also includes programs to produce an ectopic thymus, pancreas (for Type 1 diabetes), and kidney (for end-stage renal disease). LyGenesis raised financing to support clinical and pipeline advancement and intends to use the proceeds to complete its Phase 2a trial and advance its cell therapy programs. The company is positioned as a clinical-stage developer advancing multiple organ-regenerative therapies through human trials. No revenue or user metrics were reported in the article. LyGenesis is a biotechnology company developing an organ regeneration platform that uses a patient’s lymph nodes as bioreactors to regrow functioning ectopic organs. Its lead allogeneic cell therapy program targets liver regeneration for patients with end stage liver disease. The company plans to move that lead program into clinical development, beginning with a Phase 2a clinical trial in 2020. LyGenesis’s drug development pipeline also includes programs for thymus, pancreas, and kidney regeneration. The company is led by Co-Founder and CEO Michael Hufford. The recent financing provides capital to support the transition of the lead program into the clinic. LyGenesis is a Pittsburgh-based biotechnology company developing an organ regeneration technology platform that enables a patient’s lymph nodes to be used as bioreactors to regrow functioning ectopic organs. Its lead preclinical program focuses on liver regeneration for patients with end stage liver disease; other therapeutic targets include the thymus, pancreas, and kidney. The company raised $3M in a Series A financing from Juvenescence. The financing will enable LyGenesis to complete the final preclinical work required to enable human clinical trials, which will initially focus on patients with end stage liver disease. In conjunction with the investment, Greg Bailey, MD, Co‑Founder and CEO of Juvenescence, will join LyGenesis’ Board of Directors. LyGenesis’ scientific work is built on academic research by Eric Lagasse, PharmD, PhD, who serves as Chief Scientific Officer; the company is led by Michael Hufford, PhD, Chief Executive Officer, and Paulo Fontes, MD, FACS, Chief Medical Officer.

Participated · Seed · Feb 2023

Morphoceuticals is a Boston-based biotech developing artificial intelligence-guided electroceuticals to regenerate limbs, repair tissues, and regenerate organs. The company leverages work from Professors Michael Levin and David Kaplan at Tufts University and is led by CEO Michael Hufford, Ph.D. Its approach uses proprietary combinations of ion channel and gap junction modulators to induce limb regeneration, improve amputation stump health, promote organ regeneration, and address channelopathies. In its Seed-2 round the company raised $8M led by Prime Movers Lab with Juvenescence participating. Morphoceuticals intends to use the funds to expand operations and advance its development efforts. No operating metrics (revenue, users) were disclosed in the articles.

Led · Equity · Jun 2018

AgeX Therapeutics, a subsidiary of BioTime based in Alameda, Calif., focuses on developing therapeutics that target fundamental mechanisms of human aging, including telomerase-mediated cell immortality and regenerative biology. Its pipeline includes preclinical cell-based therapies AGEX-BAT1 and AGEX-VASC1, the drug candidate AGEX-iTR1547 derived from its induced Tissue Regeneration (iTR) technology, and Renelon™, a first-generation iTR product planned for topical development via a 510(k) pathway. The company also markets genomic interpretation algorithms through its LifeMap subsidiary and PSC-derived heart muscle cells for drug screening through its ESI BIO division. AgeX plans to continue advancing its preclinical programs and pursue commercial development paths for its iTR products. Financially, AgeX recently closed a $5.0 million equity financing and reports additional recent financing sources that management says provide sufficient capital into 2020. AgeX Therapeutics is a biotechnology subsidiary of BioTime focused on applying cell immortality and regenerative biology to treat aging and age‑related diseases. Formed in early 2017 and based in Alameda, Calif., AgeX's initial product programs include pluripotent stem cell‑derived brown adipocytes (AGEX‑BAT1), vascular progenitors (AGEX‑VASC1), and induced Tissue Regeneration (iTR). Planned indications for those programs are type II diabetes, cardiac ischemia, and cancer. The company raised $10 million in equity financing to fund preclinical development and to build its operational infrastructure, and BioTime remains the majority owner with about 87% of AgeX's outstanding shares. BioTime has licensed or assigned certain assets to AgeX and assigned ownership of private subsidiaries LifeMap Sciences, Ascendance Biotechnology, and ReCyte Therapeutics to AgeX while retaining core ophthalmology, orthopedics, medical aesthetics, and drug delivery assets. Management includes Michael D. West, Ph.D., who will serve as AgeX's CEO; the company may register and distribute a portion of its shares to BioTime shareholders, potentially enabling AgeX to trade publicly.