SOFINNOVA-PARTNERS
30.6.2021 10:02:11 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
Sofinnova Partners , a leading European life sciences venture capital firm based in Paris, London and Milan, announced today three new investments from the Sofinnova Telethon Fund, its early-stage fund dedicated to investments in rare, genetic diseases. The startups, AAVantgarde Bio , Alia Therapeutics , and Borea Therapeutics , are developing promising new therapies for rare, genetic diseases.
Graziano Seghezzi, Managing Partner at Sofinnova Partners, commented: “These investments mark an important step in our mission to support the excellent scientific research coming out of Italian academic and research centers. They also highlight the exceptional flow of new investment opportunities in Italian biotech, and the important role that venture capital plays in enabling ground-breaking treatments to reach patients suffering from rare, genetic diseases who today have very few therapeutic options.”
The Sofinnova Telethon Fund is the largest fund entirely dedicated to biotechnology in Italy. The team is led by technology transfer specialists Lucia Faccio and Paola Pozzi, Partners at Sofinnova Partners, who are based in the firm’s Milan office.
The three new seed investments, totaling €6M, align with the fund’s investment strategy to seek out and support the best Italian science and the most promising entrepreneurs to develop world-class companies in the field of rare, genetic diseases.
AAVantgarde Bio, based in Milan, is developing gene therapies for inherited retinal disorders. The founder, Professor Alberto Auricchio, is a highly recognized scientist and a pioneer in the field of gene therapy. The company’s technology builds on existing AAV, or adeno-associated virus-based platforms, which are the main viral vector technology used in gene therapy applications. Existing AAV-based platforms have been limited by capacity, and AAVantgarde Bio responds to this challenge by enabling delivery of large genes to tissue and cells in vivo. The company is a spin-off of TIGEM, an international research institute based in Naples that is owned and managed by the Telethon Foundation.
Alia Therapeutics, based in Trento, is developing next generation CRISPR-based medicine for safer on-target in vivo gene editing approaches to the treatment of retinal degeneration. Alia is a spin-off of the University of Trento and was accelerated at BiovelocITA, Italy’s first biotechnology accelerator co-founded in 2015 by Sofinnova Partners and two serial entrepreneurs, Silvano Spinelli and Gabriella Camboni. It is the second company to emerge from the accelerator, following the success of Enthera Pharmaceuticals, another Italian startup that is part of Sofinnova Partners’ portfolio. This round of financing also included participation from BiovelocITA, Indaco Venture Partners, and a group of Italian investors brought together by Banor SIM and Banca Profilo.
Ms. Pozzi, Partner at Sofinnova Partners, board member of AAVantgarde Bio and an investment partner in Alia Therapeutics, commented: “We are delighted to support these innovative biotech startups as they advance promising programs towards preclinical and clinical development. Both companies have highly qualified scientific teams with globally recognized expertise in the field of gene therapy and gene editing. We are confident in the potential of these companies to tackle the limitations of existing therapies and develop treatments to diseases that do not have adequate solutions today.”
Borea Therapeutics, based in Milan, is advancing a new generation of gene therapies that would enable targeting of specific tissues and cells. The company’s innovative technology could enable viral vectors to reach areas like the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS), thus opening the door to new therapeutic options. Borea Therapeutics was co-founded by Professor Paul Heppenstall and the European Molecular Biology Lab (EMBL), an intergovernmental research organization with six research sites throughout Europe, including one in Rome. The company’s research activities are performed in collaboration with Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), a scientific center of excellence in Trieste.
Ms. Faccio, Partner at Sofinnova Partners and a board member of Borea Therapeutics, commented: “One of the major limitations of gene therapy is the difficulty of selectively targeting specific cells or tissues. Borea Therapeutics’ technology has the potential to pinpoint specific tissues and cells, which would enable the use of lower doses, making treatment safer and more effective for patients. This could be the next breakthrough in gene therapy.”
About Sofinnova Partners
Sofinnova Partners is a leading European venture capital firm in life sciences, specializing in healthcare and sustainability. Based in Paris, London and Milan, the firm brings together a team of professionals from all over the world with strong scientific, medical and business expertise. Sofinnova Partners is a hands-on company builder across the entire value chain of life sciences investments, from seed to later-stage. The firm actively partners with ambitious entrepreneurs as a lead or cornerstone investor to develop transformative innovations that have the potential to positively impact our collective future.
Founded in 1972, Sofinnova Partners is a deeply-established venture capital firm in Europe, with 50 years of experience backing over 500 companies and creating market leaders around the globe. Today, Sofinnova Partners has over €2 billion under management. For more information, please visit: www.sofinnovapartners.com
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210630005320/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Philips and Imricor Launch Cardiac Interventional MR Lab Solution, Expanding Longstanding Collaboration27.8.2026 21:27:00 CEST | Press release
Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, and Imricor Medical Systems (ASX: IMR), a pioneer and world-leading developer of MR-compatible products for interventional MR procedures, today announced a new Interventional MR (iMR) lab solution for Philips 1.5T MR. The first commercially available configuration* combines Philips’ 1.5T MRI platform and Imricor's portfolio of iMR systems and consumables, enabling an MR-guided workflow for cardiac intervention, without compromising on MR field strength. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260827693715/en/ Meeting the need for greater tissue insight during cardiac intervention Cardiac arrhythmias affect millions of people worldwide, and catheter ablation is an established and increasingly utilized treatment for many complex cardiac arrhythmias. Yet today, these procedures continue to rely primarily on X-ray fluoroscopy, which provides only
Xsolla Launches Game Biz Institute, an Editorial Platform Where Industry Practitioners Explain the Business of Games27.8.2026 17:32:00 CEST | Press release
New Platform Pairs Independent Researchers and Industry Veterans with Xsolla Experts to Unpack Direct-to-Player Commerce, Monetization, Payments, and Player Retention Xsolla, a global commerce company, today announced the launch of Game Biz Institute (GBI), an editorial platform where named industry practitioners and researchers examine the commercial layer of games: direct-to-player distribution, payments, monetization, user acquisition, and retention. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260827362663/en/ Graphic: Xsolla Game design has a curriculum. The business of games does not. Engines, pipelines, production, and narrative are taught at hundreds of universities, while the commercial machinery that determines whether good work becomes a durable company is still learned through expensive trial and error, usually after the decisions that mattered have already been made. GBI was built to close that gap by publishi
Star Wars Zero Company™ Now Available On PC, PlayStation 5 and XBOX Series Consoles27.8.2026 17:00:00 CEST | Press release
Bit Reactor’s Debut Title Combines Tactical Depth and Cinematic Elegance for a New Star Wars StoryWatch the Final Trailer to Witness What’s at Stake in the Galaxy Electronic Arts Inc. and Bit Reactor, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games, announced today that Star Wars Zero Company™, a single-player turn-based tactics game set in the twilight of the Clone Wars™, is now available for PC via the EA app, Steam, and Epic Games Store, and PlayStation®5 and XBOX Series consoles. In Star Wars Zero Company, former Republic officer Hawks and Zero Company, an elite squad of unconventional professionals for hire, are recruited for an operation by Republic Intelligence. From ex-nobles to ex-cons, they now share one mission: Stop the Infinite Coil, a Separatist-aligned cult, and their leader Kundri Fathom before the deadly Shadow Plague consumes the galaxy. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260827012810/en/ https://www.yout
Rehlko Joins Wisconsin Data Center Coalition as Newest Energy Resilience Member, Reinforcing Its Role at the Center of AI and Digital Infrastructure Growth27.8.2026 15:15:00 CEST | Press release
Global Energy Resilience Leader Reinforces Its Role at the Center of AI and Digital Infrastructure Growth Through Mission-Critical Power Expertise Rehlko, a global industrial energy resilience platform providing custom-engineered, integrated power solutions for mission-critical infrastructure worldwide, today announced it has joined the Wisconsin Data Center Coalition (WIDCC) as the organization's newest energy resilience member. The membership reflects Rehlko's commitment to advancing Wisconsin's role as a leader in responsible AI infrastructure development, built on reliable and scalable power. Rapid growth in hyperscale and enterprise data center investment is reshaping markets across the world, and Rehlko is building the power infrastructure that makes it possible. Sitting at the intersection of the structural forces driving AI infrastructure expansion, grid reliability, and accelerating electrification, Rehlko brings more than a century of engineering depth and lifecycle capabilit
GenNx360 Capital Partners Closes Fourth Flagship Fund at $865 Million27.8.2026 14:30:00 CEST | Press release
Fund IV success is the result of two decades of proven performance backing lower middle market industrial services and business services companies GenNx360 Capital Partners (“GenNx360” or “the Firm”), a New York City-based private equity firm investing in U.S. lower middle market industrial services and business services companies, today announced the successful closing of GenNx360 Capital Partners IV, L.P. (“Fund IV” or “the Fund”), with $865 million in commitments, exceeding its target. Fund IV is the largest fund raised in GenNx360’s history. Fund IV was supported by a diverse group of existing and new investors including leading pensions, asset managers, insurance companies, foundations, and family offices, reflecting conviction in the firm’s disciplined investment approach, operational value creation model, and tenured, diverse team. Fund IV will continue GenNx360’s differentiated strategy of partnering with lower middle market founders and management teams to scale essential serv
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom