Nerai Bio receives 150,000 Swiss francs from Venture Kick

The start-up Nerai Bio in Zurich has received an investment of 150,000 Swiss francs from Venture Kick, according to a press release. The start-up company is dedicated to the development of novel, highly specific genome editors. The funds from Venture Kick CHF will help to translate the results of its artificial intelligence (AI)-based protein discovery platform into safe and effective therapies, according to the press release.

One in ten people worldwide is affected by a genetic disease, and there are no approved therapies for over 90 percent of these diseases, according to the background. However, current genome editing technologies can only address certain areas of the genome, meaning that only around 20 percent of disease-causing mutations can be corrected. To fully exploit the potential of genome editing, Nerai Bio has developed Morpheme, an AI-based high-throughput platform for protein engineering.

This technology generates novel tools to precisely recognize, bind and process DNA at any point. According to the press release, Nerai will initially focus on severe monogenic liver diseases. A single treatment with Nerai's genome editors could provide a safe and permanent cure. These diseases affect between 40,000 and 100,000 patients in Europe and represent a market worth billions in Europe and the USA, the report continues.

Nerai Bio will use the Venture Kick funding to drive business development and pursue strategic partnerships beyond the core therapeutic area. The funds will also be used to advance the main candidates in preclinical validation studies, according to the press release. ce/gba