Attune Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel, orally-administered, small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of rare diseases, today announced the completion of a $23 million Series B financing.

Venrock Healthcare Partners led the financing joined by new investor LifeSci Venture Partners, and existing investors RTW Investments, RA Capital, Boxer Capital and Tang Capital. In conjunction with the financing, Rod Wong, M.D., managing partner at RTW Investments, has been appointed to Attune's board of directors.

Proceeds of the Series B round will be used to advance Attune's pipeline, which includes the ongoing clinical development of ATN-249, a novel orally-administered plasma kallikrein inhibitor for the treatment of Hereditary Angioedema (HAE). HAE is a rare genetic condition that causes episodic, potentially life-threatening swellings that can affect any part of the body.

"We are delighted to have led this round of financing for Attune," said Bong Koh, M.D., partner at Venrock Healthcare Partners. "ATN-249 has demonstrated a very robust safety, tolerability and pharmacodynamic profile in phase 1 and we look forward to being a partner as the company advances this important new medicine through development."

Andrew McDonald, Ph.D., CEO of Attune, said, "This financing brings together a syndicate of investors with a deep understanding and long history of supporting companies that develop novel HAE therapeutics. Building upon our recently announced positive Phase 1 data, the Series B enables Attune to rapidly advance our lead clinical program through Phase 2 while also providing capital for our other pre-clinical discovery programs."

About ATN-249
ATN-249 is an oral, novel small molecule kallikrein inhibitor that was optimized for potency and pharmacokinetics. ATN-249 has been tested in phase 1 studies, where 249 achieved high blood levels and was shown to be safe and well-tolerated. In the phase 1 study, ATN-249 was shown to inhibit plasma kallikrein in vivo at levels that are expected to result in inhibition of HAE episodes.

About Hereditary Angioedema
Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare, potentially life-threatening disease characterized by acute skin and mucosal edema. It is caused by an autosomal dominant mutation of the SERPING1 or F12 genes, resulting in diminished C1 inhibitor levels and/or function. Dysregulation of the contact-kallikrein pathway mediated by dysfunctional C1 inhibitor causes upregulation of bradykinin production, leading to increased vascular permeability, recurrent abdominal pain, and mucosal swelling, which can be fatal with laryngeal involvement. Current treatments are limited by route of administration and adverse events, since all leading HAE drugs are administered intravenously or subcutaneously and may be associated with drug-specific adverse effects.

About Attune Pharmaceuticals
Attune Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel once-daily small molecule therapeutics for treatment of rare diseases. Attune Pharmaceuticals is currently advancing two programs, one in Hereditary Angioedema (HAE) and a second in complement-mediated diseases.