Immitra Bio raises $3M pre-seed to make gene editing a single injection
What's the deal? Immitra BioDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, an ETH Zurich spinoff based in Geneva, has closed a $3 million pre-seed round to develop one-time gene editing therapies delivered in a single injection. Backbone VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and OCCIDENTDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → led the round, with participation from KickfundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Venture KickDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Zürcher KantonalbankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, FONGITDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and the ETH FoundationDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. About CHF 2.25 million came from investors, with a further CHF 150,000 in non-dilutive funding.
What's the endgame? Immitra Bio is building a platform for scalable, curative in-vivo gene editing, aiming to replace complex stem cell transplantation with a single shot. Its technology is mutation agnostic, avoiding the ex-vivo cell manipulation, patient conditioning, and personalised treatments that limit current therapies.
Where the money goes: Most of the proceeds will fund preclinical proof-of-concept studies for lead candidate IB-003, a potential one-time treatment for an inherited anemia. The rest supports pipeline discovery and further work on the company's digital target identification platform.
Why now? "Recent advances and growing market adoption of gene therapies have validated the enormous potential of curative genetic medicine," said Paul Sunzenauer of OCCIDENT. But current approaches still face "chemotherapy-related toxicities, manufacturing complexity, and limited scalability," he added.
What they're saying: "Our goal is to make gene editing therapies scalable, commercially viable, and accessible to patients," said chief executive officer and co-founder Jan Nelis. Backbone Ventures managing partner Philippe Bernet said the team's approach "could enable a broad platform across multiple genetic diseases."
The signal: At $3 million, the round sits in the top 25% of pre-seed deals by size — a notable vote of confidence for a company still at the preclinical stage. The backing signals investor appetite for gene editing platforms that promise to sidestep the cost and complexity that have kept early curative therapies out of reach for most patients.
Read more: BioAlps
Image credit: Immitra Bio
