Cambridge-based CardiaTec has raised $6.5mn to accelerate drug discovery for cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attacks and strokes.
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death globally, claiming the lives of 17.9 million people each year. Yet our knowledge of their underlying biology is still limited, hindering the effectiveness of clinical trials and drug solutions.
CardiaTec aims to address this knowledge gap with a drug discovery platform that leverages AI to analyse human tissue “multi-omics” data.
Mutli-omics is a biological analysis approach which combines the study of multiple “omes,” the sets of various biological molecules or entities within a cell or organism. These include the genome, the transcriptome, the proteome, and the epigenome.
By analysing multi-omics data, CardiaTec’s platform investigates relationships that stretch across every level of biology to shed light on how cardiovascular diseases develop.
Uncovering drug targets
The startup is focusing in particular on uncovering drug targets: specific molecules within the body that are linked with a disease’s progress and can be affected by a drug to achieve the intended therapeutic effect.
CardiaTec’s technology uses computational methods to identify and prioritise dysregulated drug targets and pathways associated with the disease.
“This approach enables the discovery of novel drug targets with well-defined mechanisms of action, increasing the likelihood of successful preclinical and subsequent clinical translation,” Raphael Peralta, the company’s co-founder and CEO, told TNW.
CardiaTec is also building the first and largest human heart tissue multi-omics dataset. To do this, it has established a network of 65 hospitals across the UK and the US.
With the fresh round, the company plans to expand its platform and move proprietary drug targets towards the preclinical stage.
“We have identified our first therapeutic targets,” Peralta said.
California-based Montage Ventures led the company’s new seed round. Individual investors and VC firms also participated, including APEX Ventures and Dr Maximilien Levesque, CEO and co-founder of drug discovery startup Aqemia.
Peralta founded CardiaTech in 2021, alongside Namshik Han (CTO) and Thelma Zablocki (COO). The trio spun it out from the Han Lab at the University of Cambridge.