Tenpoint Therapeutics launches with $70 million in funding for cell therapy platform

The company will target age-related and inherited ocular disease. Image credit: ©jijomathai – stock.adobe.com

Biotechnology company Tenpoint Therapeutics announced its launch with a $70 million Series A financing. In a news release, the company stated its cell-based therapies will target both age-related and inherited ocular diseases.¹ Tenpoint’s existing team of scientific founders represent the company’s “global mission” and include researchers from University College London Institute of Ophthalmology, Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, Institut de la Vision in Paris and the University of Washington in the United States. The company also announced Eddy Anglade, MD, will join the Tenpoint Board of Directors as CEO. Tenpoint’s founding CEO, Vanessa King, PhD, will continue to support the organization as a strategic advisor. 

Tenpoint’s aim is to reverse vision loss by generating specialized ocular cell types, both ex vivo and in vivo.¹ “Tenpoint has great potential to lead ophthalmology into a new era which will fully replace cells lost to degenerative conditions rather than merely endeavoring to slow the processes that drive vision loss,” said David Guyer, MD, previously named chair of the Board of Directors.¹ “This offers the potential for more complete restoration of sight and for curative treatments able to eliminate the underlying cause of disease.”

Dr Anglade, CEO, called cell-based therapies “an ideal modality for degenerative ocular diseases.” In the statement, he said Tenpoint will focus on creating scalable treatments which target the root causes of vision loss.

The Series A round included new investment from British Patient Capital, Qiming Venture Partners USA, Eight Roads and the UCL Technology Fund. F-Prime and Sofinnova Partners, founding investors, also supported the company’s expansion.¹ “Tenpoint stands out in the realm of regenerative medicine, with an innovative approach that could ultimately provide a transformative cure to many causes of blindness for millions of patients around the world,” said Graziano Seghezzi, PhD, managing partner at seed investor Sofinnova Partners.

Reference

1. Tenpoint Therapeutics Launches with $70 Million Series A Financing to Reverse Vision Loss Through Engineered Cell-Based Therapeutics and In Vivo Reprogramming. News release. July 12, 2023. https://www.tenpointtherapeutics.com/press-releases/tenpoint-therapeutics-launches-with-70-million-series-a-financing-to-reverse-vision-loss-through-engineered-cell-based-therapeutics-and-in-vivo-reprogramming/