At signing, the company received approximately $121 million and expects to receive the remaining $100 million subject to customary closing conditions (including regulatory approval under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act). Merck participated as a new investor in the financing alongside commitments from founding investors MPM Capital and BioImpact Capital, an affiliate of MPM, among others. Orna was created in 2019 by MPM Capital and BioImpact Capital, with funding from the UBS Oncology Impact Fund.

Orna Therapeutics was founded on groundbreaking research by Alex Wesselhoeft, Ph.D., and Daniel G. Anderson, Ph.D., from MIT and built by MPM Capital and BioImpact Capital, an affiliate of MPM. Orna's proprietary circular RNA (oRNA) is engineered as linear RNA that self-circularizes. By taking a line and turning it into a circle, oRNA exhibits numerous advantages over traditional linear mRNA therapies such as simplified production, increased protein expression, and a superior immunogenicity profile. With proprietary lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), including those from Orna's joint venture with ReNAgade Therapeutics, an RNA delivery company, our technologies expand the possibilities of what RNA therapeutics can achieve.