New Drug Discovery Company NeRRe Therapeutics Created to Develop Neurokinin Antagonists from GSK

NeRRe Therapeutics Ltd, is launched to develop a portfolio of clinical and pre-clinical neurokinin receptor antagonists divested from GlaxoSmithKline.

NeRRe has raised £11.5 million ($18.4 million) in Series A financing to support the progression of these molecules into clinical studies in diseases for which there is substantial unmet medical need.

The initial focus of the funding is on the most advanced neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist in this pipeline which is being repositioned for a new indication.

The Company founders, Dr Emiliangelo Ratti and Dr Mike Trower, are both former senior leaders of neurosciences drug discovery at GSK and have intimate knowledge of the transferred assets and the neurokinin field. Dr Ratti will become Chief Executive Officer of NeRRe and Dr Trower will take the role of Chief Scientific Officer.

NeRRe Therapeutics’ shareholders include Novo A/S (Novo), Advent Venture Partners (AVP), and GSK. Dr Martin Edwards (Novo Ventures) and Dr Raj Parekh (AVP) will each join NeRRe’s Board.

The Company will be based at the state-of-the-art Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst, the UK's first open innovation bioscience campus.

Commenting on today’s launch of NeRRe, Dr Emiliangelo Ratti, Chief Executive Officer, said: "I am extremely excited about the prospect of progressing further the development of NeRRe’s neurokinin receptor antagonist pipeline. With our knowledge and insights into the neurokinin receptor system, we look forward to developing these assets in high value indications where there is unmet need. I am pleased to acknowledge the strong support received from GSK to launch this new enterprise together with the commitment received from our investors, who share our belief in the potential of the company’s portfolio."