VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NanoVation Therapeutics, a platform company developing innovative technologies to overcome barriers to nucleic acid delivery, today announced the expansion of its Board of Directors and the close of a funding round led by Convergent Ventures.
These two developments preceded NanoVation’s September announcement of an up to US$600 million multi-year partnership with Novo Nordisk to advance the development of novel genetic medicines targeting cardiometabolic and rare diseases.
The new financing will support the further advancement of NanoVation's lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technology platform for RNA delivery to cells outside of the liver, including the completion of large animal studies. The Board of Directors appointments include Zachariah (Zach) Jonasson, Ph.D., Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Business Officer (CBO) at Absci and co-founder of Convergent Ventures, and David Main, President and CEO of Notch Therapeutics.
"This strategic investment and the addition of two industry veterans to our Board mark important milestones in NanoVation's growth trajectory," said Dominik Witzigmann, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of NanoVation Therapeutics. "Zach's deep understanding of emerging technologies and track record of investing in and building successful biotech companies, combined with David's extensive executive leadership experience, help position NanoVation for its next growth phase and new strategic partnerships in cell-specific nucleic acid delivery."
The expansion of NanoVation's Board adds expertise in emerging therapeutic technologies and nucleic acid delivery. Together, Jonasson and Main bring decades of experience building and scaling successful biotechnology companies through strategic collaborations and technology development.
Zachariah Jonasson is currently the CFO and CBO of Absci Corp., a biotechnology company that uses generative AI at scale to create novel therapeutics. At Absci, Jonasson serves on the executive leadership team and is responsible for the company’s financial and business strategy. He is also a co-founder of two venture capital firms, Convergent Ventures and Phoenix Venture Partners (PVP), where he previously led each firm’s investment strategy in the biotechnology sector as a General Managing Partner.
"The new technologies being developed at NanoVation address the existing challenges preventing the efficacious delivery of genetic medicines," said Jonasson. “I have known this pioneering team for many years and I’m excited to support their mission to usher in a new era of targeted genetic medicines for the benefit of patients.”
David Main has 30 years of biotechnology leadership experience. He is currently President and CEO of Notch Therapeutics, a company engineering pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to create a universal T cell. Previously, he was co-founder, Chairman and CEO of Aquinox Pharmaceuticals and President and CEO of INEX Pharmaceuticals, a company developing lipid-based drug delivery systems for oncology therapeutics. Companies that spun out of INEX include Protiva Biotherapeutics and Tekmira, which was later rebranded as Arbutus Biopharma.
“These strategic developments – the recent partnership announcement, new funding and expansion of the board – significantly enhance NanoVation's position as a leading innovator in nucleic acid delivery," said Pieter Cullis, Ph.D., current Board Chair and co-founder of NanoVation. "Welcoming seasoned entrepreneurs like David and Zach strengthens our team, bringing invaluable business acumen that complements our technical expertise. Their involvement provides powerful validation of NanoVation’s potential to advance LNP technologies and reach new therapeutic frontiers."
About Convergent Ventures
Convergent Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on outstanding founders whose science-based technologies are game-changing for people and planetary health. The fund actively invests in scientific founders building at the intersection of data and any of biology, chemistry or physics.
About NanoVation Therapeutics
NanoVation Therapeutics is a pioneer in the design and creation of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) for nucleic acid delivery. The company’s LNP technologies aim to overcome the limits of existing approaches to nucleic acid delivery, including the ability to target tissues outside the liver (extrahepatic delivery). NanoVation’s lead technology is its proprietary long-circulating LNP (lcLNP™) platform, which enables functional nucleic acid delivery to extrahepatic cell types and has demonstrated an improved therapeutic index in preclinical studies. NanoVation partners with leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies to enable the development of genetic medicines for previously untreatable diseases. For additional information, please visit nanovationtx.com or follow NanoVation Therapeutics on LinkedIn.
