An epilepsy drug firm has secured US$2.4m in grant funding to expand its precision medicines platform for neurological disorders.
Lario Therapeutics is developing selective small-molecule inhibitors targeting voltage-gated neuronal calcium channels, proteins that regulate calcium flow into nerve cells and are central to brain signalling.
The funding will support work in Parkinson’s disease and exploration of a further indication in post-traumatic stress disorder.
The US$2.4m total comes from two sources. A US$1.5m grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research will advance research into a calcium channel known as CaV1.3, which is linked to disease progression in Parkinson’s.
The foundation has recently identified CaV1.3 as a promising drug target through its Targets to Therapies initiative, which aims to prioritise and reduce risk around potential disease-modifying approaches.
Henning Steinhagen, chief executive of Lario Therapeutics, said: “Lario was founded to translate strong human genetics and neuronal biology into precision medicines for patients with severe neurological disease.
“We are grateful for the continued support of The Michael J. Fox Foundation, and the funding from Wellcome which support us to advance these unique programmes towards the clinic, taking us one step closer to providing meaningful treatments for patients with high unmet need.”
A separate US$900,000, equivalent to around £700,000, grant from Wellcome will fund validation of another calcium channel, CaV2.3, as a target in post-traumatic stress disorder.
This builds on large-scale human genetics research linking variation in the CaV2.3 gene to increased risk of the condition.
The work complements a previously announced US$6m grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2024, supporting preclinical development of CaV2.3 as a potential disease-modifying approach for Parkinson’s disease.
The company is also advancing its lead CaV2.3 programme for severe developmental and epileptic encephalopathies, a group of serious childhood epilepsy conditions.
It plans to begin IND-enabling studies in 2026, followed by an IND filing and first-in-human clinical trials.
Tom Otis, chief scientific officer, said: “These awards recognise the growing body of evidence linking neuronal calcium channel dysfunction to the core biology of neurological and psychiatric diseases.
“By combining selective small-molecule chemistry with rigorous target biology, we are building a unique platform designed to deliver precision therapies for patients suffering from epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and post-traumatic stress disorder.”
