Tunitas Therapeutics, Inc. today announced the close of a $10 million Series A venture financing. The financing was co-led by Ally Bridge Group and WuXi Ventures, with the further participation of RA Capital Advisors.

Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance Tunitas' lead fusion protein candidate, epsi-gam, through its initial Phase 1 clinical trials and the initiation of Phase 2a studies. The company plans to develop epsi-gam as a potential treatment for the millions of patients with moderate to severe asthma that is uncontrolled with conventional bronchodilators and inhaled corticosteroids, and for patients with severe, potentially life-threatening food allergies. The funding will also be used to continue the development of Tunitas' pipeline of novel targeted vaccines for the treatment of specific allergies.

As part of the transaction, David Nikodem, Ph.D., Managing Director, Ally Bridge Group, and Sophie Qiao, Ph.D., Venture Partner, WuXi Ventures, have joined the Tunitas board of directors.

'Tunitas has a broad technology platform focused on developing targeted protein therapeutics for allergy, based on a novel strategy for the regulation of signal transduction in the body's key allergic cells,' said Nolan Sigal, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Tunitas. 'We have developed our platform and lead candidate to the point of clinical readiness over the last several years with significant non-dilutive funding from the National Institutes of Health. With this new financial support from a group of experienced investors, we have a tremendous opportunity to develop first-in-class treatments for allergic diseases, and we seek to make a significant impact on patient care with our innovative approach.'

'Tunitas has demonstrated leadership in the field of allergy therapeutics and has made strong progress with a novel product pipeline to address multiple indications,' said Frank Yu, Founder and CEO of Ally Bridge Group. 'We have great confidence in and are very impressed by the rigorous science and well-thought-out clinical program behind epsi-gam. We look forward to supporting Tunitas' plans to address new therapeutic opportunities and to bring innovative medicines to patients with allergic diseases.'

About Tunitas Therapeutics

Tunitas Therapeutics, Inc. (San Francisco) is a privately held biopharmaceutical company that is developing novel and precisely targeted protein therapeutics with the potential to dramatically change the lives of allergy sufferers. The company's therapeutic approach offers the potential for long-lasting treatments with greater safety and improved efficacy than existing therapies for many serious allergic diseases, such as asthma and food allergy. For more information on Tunitas Therapeutics, please visit the company's website at http://www.tunitastherapeutics.com.