Backed by a $55 million Series A funding round from Apple Tree Partners (ATP) and a contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Red Queen Therapeutics is set to advance its novel antiviral platform. The company's technology recently achieved clinical validation in COVID-19 patients, highlighting its potential to address a wide range of viral infections.
Focus on vulnerable populations
Red Queen Therapeutics aims to develop treatments for the general population, with a particular focus on immunocompromised patients who face higher risks from viral pathogens. “As existing viruses circulate and new ones arise, treating sick individuals and curtailing transmission in vulnerable communities is an urgent medical need,” said Seth Harrison, founder and managing partner of Apple Tree Partners and chair of Red Queen’s board of directors.
Foundational expertise and support
The company was co-founded by ATP and Loren Walensky, a renowned pediatric oncologist and researcher at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Boston Children’s Hospital. "Our aim is to address the unmet need for convenient, on-demand medicines to prevent and treat COVID-19 and other viral diseases, particularly for immunocompromised individuals," said Dr. Walensky.
Creative antiviral platform
Red Queen Therapeutics uses its novel stapled lipopeptide platform technology to develop antiviral therapies. This technology targets the fusion mechanism of viruses, blocking viral entry and promoting viral clearance. “Our stapled lipopeptides act on the core fusion machinery of the virus, enabling sustained activity against emerging variants,” said Mark Mitchnick, MD, chief executive officer of Red Queen Therapeutics.
This approach offers several advantages over existing antiviral therapies and vaccines:
- It blocks viral entry, preventing host-cell infection and accelerating viral clearance.
- A single agent can target multiple variants and viruses within a family.
- It acts on the virus itself, making it effective even in patients with impaired immune systems.
“Red Queen’s stapled lipopeptides act on the core fusion machinery of the virus, which is highly conserved across variants. This mechanism enables sustained activity against emerging variants and makes Red Queen therapies well-suited not only for individualized care in high-risk patients but also stockpiling and rapid deployment for population-level interventions,” said Mark Mitchnick, chief executive officer of Red Queen Therapeutics and a Venture Partner at ATP.
“Our platform technology has demonstrated its potential for activity across many families of viruses, and we have refined our capabilities to a point where we can customize lipopeptides in weeks. We are excited by both the broad and ready utility of the platform and the therapeutic promise of the product candidates it produces. We just completed a very promising Phase 1 trial of our SARS-CoV-2 therapeutic and are in discussions around the phase 2, and we have a robust pipeline.”
Promising clinical data
Red Queen recently completed a phase 1 clinical trial of its lead program, RQ-01, demonstrating the platform’s potential. The trial, which involved 67 COVID-19-positive patients, showed that RQ-01 could clear the virus more rapidly than in untreated patients, without significant side effects. “These phase 1 results validate the Red Queen platform by showing that we can rapidly develop and deliver our fusion inhibitors in clinically relevant doses,” said Paul Da Silva Jardine, chief scientific officer of Red Queen Therapeutics.
BARDA partnership for pan-influenza therapeutics
Red Queen also secured a BARDA contract to develop a pan-influenza virus fusion inhibitor. This program aims to provide rapid response solutions for flu outbreaks, with preclinical data expected by 2025. “With ATP support, Red Queen has successfully brought its novel technology for designing and developing new antivirals through clinical proof of concept,” added Dr Harrison.
The company is poised to make significant strides in antiviral therapy development, leveraging its innovative platform to address the ongoing and emerging threats posed by viral infections.
