Longevity biotech clock.bio has launched with $4 million in funding to develop regenerative medicines to prevent and treat age-related diseases.
The company says its immediate objective is to decode all rejuvenation programmes present in human cells, to build an atlas of disease and rejuvenation targets for clinical translation.
“We have a bold mission of extending human healthspan by 20 years based on biomarkers of ageing in a Phase III trial by the end of this decade. Embryonic stem cells hold the key to unlocking rejuvenation biology,” said Mark Kotter, Founder, clock.bio. “We believe that a comprehensive understanding of all relevant repair processes is the best starting point for designing regenerative and healthspan increasing treatments.”
clock.bio aims to extend and improve quality of life by reversing the harmful effects of time in human cells, harnessing the regenerative capabilities of human pluripotent stem cells.
The company has developed an ageing model that force-ages human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and triggers their self-rejuvenation mechanism. Unbiased CRISPR screens on large samples of these cells allow for the identification of gene candidates that are causally relevant for cell rejuvenation.
The company’s strategy includes proprietary ageing-interventions for iPSCs, unbiased screens for rejuvenation biology, identification and validation of rejuvenation targets and therapeutic lead prioritisation and translation into clinical applications.
“Somatic cells age but cannot rejuvenate. Pluripotent stem cells are the only cells in the human body that can rejuvenate. Our unique approach is to force-age human iPSCs and trigger their self-rejuvenation mechanism. Human ageing is a complex process that is difficult to model in cell culture. clock.bio’s model delivers ‘ageing in a dish,’ where unbiased CRISPR screens reveal the genes that cause ageing/rejuvenation and thus uncover drivers,” said Markus Gstoettner, incoming CEO at clock.bio.
