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CARB-X funds ArrePath to advance novel antibiotic to treat multidrug-resistant infections

Funding supports ArrePath’s development of an innovative antibiotic targeting Enterobacterales with potential to treat complicated urinary tract infections 

Boston, MA, April 2, 2025 – Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) will award biotechnology company ArrePath US$3.7 million to execute a Lead Optimization workplan for its first-in-class antibiotic targeting a clinically novel target for the treatment of complicated urinary tract infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) Enterobacterales.

Using its proprietary, artificial intelligence and machine-learning-enabled platform, ArrePath has identified a series of inhibitors with a novel mechanism of action against a highly conserved target but clinically-unexploited in Gram-negative bacteria with no human homolog.

If successfully developed, ArrePath’s novel antibiotic class will be active against the vast majority of MDR Enterobacterales infections, representing an important new tool in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. ArrePath’s inhibitors have attributes that suggest they can be administered orally as well as by IV. This combination is imperative for treating MDR infections in the community and outpatient settings, allowing hospitalized patients being treated with an IV to switch to oral therapy when appropriate.

“CARB-X is excited to support ArrePath in advancing its new antibiotic targeting multidrug-resistant Enterobacterales,” said Erin Duffy, PhD, R&D Chief of CARB-X. “By leveraging its innovative, machine-learning-driven platform, ArrePath has identified a novel mechanism of action against a conserved target in Gram-negative bacteria, offering potential for broad activity against MDR infections. If they are able to realize an oral form for this class, then this could significantly improve treatment options for complicated urinary tract infections, especially in outpatient and community settings, and represent an important step forward in the global effort to combat antimicrobial resistance.”

“We are thrilled to have received this prestigious award from CARB-X, which not only provides external validation of our proprietary AI/ML platform but also allows us to rapidly advance a novel class of antibiotics that is so desperately needed for the treatment of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative infections,” said Kevin Krause, ArrePath President and CEO. “We are grateful for the financial support and expertise provided by CARB-X.”

In March 2024, CARB-X launched a new funding solicitation to fill major R&D gaps in the global antibiotic development pipeline. More than 300 Expressions of Interest were accepted in four distinct product themes: therapeutics for infections caused by Gram-negative pathogens, prevention of invasive disease, diagnostics for neonatal sepsis, proof-of-concept for novel sample types for diagnosing lower-respiratory tract infections. Additional projects are under review, and new product developers will be announced this year. CARB-X will be accepting applications for the 2025 funding round from April 16 to April 30.  Register for the CARB-X newsletter to receive updates.

Recent estimates published in September 2024 reveal that 39 million deaths directly attributable to bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR) will occur between 2025-2050. This is equal to three deaths every minute. Under an alternative scenario where urgent action is taken to replenish a Gram-negative drug pipeline to prevent AMR deaths, more than 11 million deaths could be averted in the same timeframe. This is part of the mission of CARB-X, which is accelerating the development of high-value, innovative products to prevent, diagnose and treat the most dangerous bacterial infections that have become resistant to antibiotics. CARB-X emphasizes performance characteristics that patients need against infections driving the greatest global morbidity and mortality.

When CARB-X was founded in 2016, the early-stage antibiotic pipeline was stalled. Since its inception, CARB-X has supported 114 R&D projects in 14 countries, and CARB-X product developers have made significant progress: 19 projects have advanced into or completed clinical trials; 13 remain active in clinical development, including late-stage clinical trials; and two diagnostic products have reached the market. Additionally, at least 9 product developers with active R&D projects have already secured advanced development partnerships to support their clinical development after leaving the CARB-X portfolio. All CARB-X-funded product developers are contractually obligated to develop a Stewardship and Access Plan for their product, outlining strategies to ensure responsible stewardship and appropriate access in low- and middle-income countries.

CARB-X is funded in part with federal funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) under agreement number 75A50122C00028 and by awards from Wellcome (WT224842), Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the UK Department of Health and Social Care’s Global Antimicrobial Resistance Innovation Fund (GAMRIF), the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the Gates Foundation, and the Novo Nordisk Foundation. The U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in HHS, provides support in the form of in-kind services through access to a suite of preclinical services for product development. The content of this press release is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of any CARB-X funders.

CARB-X Contact: Marissa Novel[email protected]

Arrepath Contact: Reena Pagnoni[email protected]

About CARB-X

CARB-X (Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator) is a global non-profit partnership dedicated to supporting early-stage antibacterial research and development to address the rising threat of drug-resistant bacteria. CARB-X supports innovative therapeutics, preventatives and rapid diagnostics. CARB-X is led by Boston University and funded by a consortium of governments and foundations. CARB-X funds only projects that target the most serious, resistant bacteria identified on global priority lists, syndromes with the greatest global morbidity and mortality, and performance characteristics necessary for patients. https://carb-x.org/ | X (formerly Twitter) @CARB_X

About ArrePath

ArrePath combines the power of human intelligence with AI/ML to address the challenge of efficient drug discovery, which is a complex optimization process paired with an unimaginable number of chemical possibilities. Our AI/ML platform couples virtual and experimental compound design and testing to create efficiency at identifying novel compounds that are both active and have the attributes required to progress. To date, we have identified antibiotic hits active against three clinically novel targets. Of these, we are progressing AP-001 to focus on the large outpatient UTI market and a hospital avoidance strategy plus the potential for step-down from hospital-based IV therapies. We also have discovered multiple novel compound families active against non-tuberculous Mycobateria (NTM) and pathways to expand our platform into other therapeutic areas beginning with respiratory medicine. For more information on ArrePath’s innovative work and mission, please visit http://www.arrepath.com/.

About BARDA and NIAID

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services works to enhance and protect the health and well-being of all Americans, providing for effective health and human services and fostering advances in medicine, public health, and social services. The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) leads the nation’s medical and public health preparedness for, response to and recovery from disaster and other public health emergencies. Within ASPR, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) invests in innovation, advanced research and development, acquisition, and manufacturing of medical countermeasures needed to combat health security threats. BARDA is one of the leading public sector funders of advanced development of antimicrobial therapeutics and diagnostics worldwide, having invested more than $2.4 billion in antimicrobial products since 2010. This investment has supported the development of over 160 antimicrobial products and led to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of four new antibiotics and FDA 510(k) clearance of eight diagnostics.

About Wellcome

Wellcome supports science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone. We support discovery research into life, health and wellbeing, and we’re taking on three worldwide health challenges: mental health, infectious disease and climate and health.

About the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Education and research are crucial foundations for our future. Thus, the promotion of education, science and research is a policy priority of the German Federal Government. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) strengthens education at all stages of life and provides support for scientific research and innovation.

About the Public Health Agency of Canada

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), established in 2004, is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic disease control and prevention.  Its mission is to improve the health of all people and communities in Canada by addressing public health priorities through science, innovation, service delivery, and collaborative action. The Agency collaborates closely with all levels of government, non-government organizations, and international partners to build an effective public health system. PHAC has a strong history of addressing health threats, including collaboration on a One Health approach to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). As part of the recently launched Pan-Canadian Action Plan on AMR 2023-2027, PHAC is piloting an economic pull-incentive project to increase access to essential antimicrobial drugs not yet authorized in Canada to address priority unmet public health needs.

About the Novo Nordisk Foundation

Established in Denmark in 1924, the Novo Nordisk Foundation is an enterprise foundation with philanthropic objectives. The vision of the Foundation is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet. The Foundation’s mission is to progress research and innovation in the prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic and infectious diseases as well as to advance knowledge and solutions to support a green transformation of society. www.novonordiskfonden.dk/en

About Boston University

Founded in 1839, Boston University is an internationally recognized institution of higher education and research. With nearly 37,000 students, it is one of the largest private residential universities in the United States. BU consists of 17 schools and colleges, along with the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences and a number of multi-disciplinary centers and institutes integral to the University’s research and teaching mission. In 2012, BU joined the Association of American Universities (AAU), a consortium of leading research universities in the United States and Canada. For further information, please contact Kim Miragliuolo at [email protected]www.bu.edu

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Join us at ESCMID 2025 from April 11-15 in Vienna, Austria

Join us at ESCMID 2025 from April 11-15 in Vienna, Austria. Our CEO Kevin Krause, our CSO Alita Miller, and our Head of Chemistry Deidre Johns will be in attendance hearing about the latest breakthroughs in Infectious Diseases R&D, meeting with colleagues and collaborators, and discussing progress on our AI/ML-enabled discovery pipeline of antibacterials focused on MDR gram-negative bacteria and NTM.

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Live Webinar: Charting New Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence for Antibiotic Design

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Kevin Krause named President and CEO of ArrePath

Princeton, NJ, November 19, 2024 – ArrePath, Inc., an emerging biotechnology company focused on applying deep phenotypic insights and machine learning to the discovery of new anti-infectives, today announced the appointment of Kevin Krause as President and Chief Executive. Mr. Krause brings more than 25 years of experience in research, clinical development, commercialization, and corporate development in the biotech industry, as the company continues to expand its pipeline of internally discovered assets.

Mr. Krause most recently served as the Chief Strategy Officer of AN2 Therapeutics, Inc., a company applying boron chemistry to the discovery and development of novel therapies. In this role, he was the Project Team leader for AN2’s epetraborole Phase 2/3 NTM lung disease program, while overseeing various departments including Project Management, Clinical Operations, Regulatory, Quality, Medical Writing, and Corporate Development. Earlier in his career, he held various positions in R&D leadership and Corporate Business Development at Achaogen, Cerexa, and Theravance BioPharma, where he was instrumental in the clinical development and/or approval of Zemdri® (plazomicin), Avycaz® (ceftazidime-avibactam), Vibativ® (telavancin), Teflaro® (ceftaroline fosamil), Colobreathe® (inhaled colistin) and Quinsair® (inhaled levofloxacin).

Mr. Krause received an M.B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business and a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology from San Francisco State University.

“We are thrilled to welcome Kevin as the new Chief Executive Officer of ArrePath”, said co-founder Dr. Zemer Gitai, on behalf of the company’s Board of Directors. “Thanks to his exceptional track record of visionary leadership, we are confident that Kevin will use the team’s momentum to advance their lead program to the clinic and unlock new opportunities for growth. This is an exciting new chapter for ArrePath and we look forward to the positive impact Kevin will bring to the company and its stakeholders.”

“I am honored to join ArrePath, which has made tremendous progress on the application of its proprietary AI/ML platform to discover antibacterials with novel mechanisms of action,” said Mr. Krause. “I look forward to working with the team to advance our lead program and to expand our existing portfolio.”

About ArrePath

ArrePath was founded with the mission to discover new and differentiated classes of anti-infectives to address antimicrobial resistance (AMR) through the application of state-of-the-art technologies and novel strategies. We apply world-class science and innovation in imaging and AI/ML technologies to identify and develop novel drugs to address global health issues. Our advanced machine learning (ML) drug discovery platform enables a rapid and efficient identification of new drug classes with desired activity profiles and clinical utility, coupled with a deep understanding of mechanism of action at the outset of the discovery process. 

For more information on ArrePath’s innovative work and mission, please visit www.arrepath.com.

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Reena Pagnoni
ArrePath
[email protected]
Phone: 609.423.1572

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ArrePath Secures £1 Million Grant from PACE to Advance Novel Antibiotics Against Multidrug-Resistant Bacterial Infections

Princeton, NJ, November 19, 2024 – ArrePath, Inc., an emerging biotechnology company focused on applying deep phenotypic insights and machine learning to the discovery of new anti-infectives, today announced that it has been awarded a £1 million non-dilutive grant from PACE (Pathways to Antimicrobial Clinical Efficacy) in support of its efforts to develop a new class of antibiotics designed to address multidrug-resistant (MDR) infections, a growing global health threat.

Antimicrobial resistance renders standard antibiotic treatments ineffective, transforming some common infections into severe, life-threatening conditions. This resistance exacerbates the complexity and cost of medical care, jeopardizes immunocompromised patients, poses a significant public health crisis, and causes economic challenges worldwide.

To address the critical need for more effective treatment of microbial infections, ArrePath has leveraged its proprietary AI/ML platform to identify a unique class of small molecules with a mechanism of action distinct from current antibiotics. An antibiotic derived from these compounds would be active against a significant number of MDR infections, in particular those caused by E. coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and related species.

Supported by this substantial funding from PACE, ArrePath will advance its lead program towards investigational new drug (IND)-enabling studies with a potential first clinical indication of complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs) caused by MDR organisms. A dual delivery system—both intravenous and oral—will offer flexible treatment options across various healthcare settings.

“We are incredibly honored to have received this competitive award from PACE, which recognizes the potential of our innovative lead program powered by our proprietary AI/ML platform,” said Alita Miller, Ph.D., ArrePath Chief Scientific Officer. “This critical funding will enable ArrePath to continue developing a much-needed new class of antibiotics to combat multidrug-resistant Gram-negative infections. We are confident that our novel approach will be instrumental in addressing the escalating AMR crisis.”

Clive Mason, Programme Director, PACE, said: “We are delighted to welcome ArrePath into the PACE project portfolio. We congratulate them on their success after a highly competitive funding call seeking novel, early-stage antimicrobial therapeutics to tackle AMR. In addition to funding, we look forward to supporting them through access to a network of potential partners, advisors, mentors, and enabling technologies and capabilities.”

About PACE
PACE is a new and comprehensive approach to tackling one of the world’s most complex health challenges: antimicrobial resistance (AMR). PACE works with the AMR community and offers funding, support, and advice to help progress early-stage antimicrobial drug and diagnostic projects with greater speed and confidence – giving the best AMR innovations the greatest chance of success.

PACE selects, invests in and supports projects that address the world’s most threatening pathogens. In doing so, it will deliver innovations for onward development and investment, moving them closer to clinical trials. Working together with the brightest and best, PACE will help tackle this rising threat to global health.

PACE was founded in 2023 by LifeArcInnovate UK and Medicines Discovery Catapult, with a £30 million programme of funding and support to be deployed over five years.

About ArrePath

ArrePath was founded with the mission to discover new and differentiated classes of anti-infectives to address antimicrobial resistance (AMR) through the application of state-of-the-art technologies and novel strategies. We apply world-class science and innovation in imaging and AI/ML technologies to identify and develop novel drugs to address global health issues. Our advanced machine learning (ML) drug discovery platform enables a rapid and efficient identification of new drug classes with desired activity profiles and clinical utility, coupled with a deep understanding of mechanism of action at the outset of the discovery process. 

For more information on ArrePath’s innovative work and mission, please visit http://www.arrepath.com/.

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Reena Pagnoni
ArrePath
[email protected]
Phone: 609.423.1572

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ArrePath Appoints Connor Coley, PhD, and Paul Hergenrother, PhD, to Scientific Advisory Board

Princeton, NJ – November 18, 2022 – ArrePath today announced that it has appointed two new members to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB):  Connor Coley, PhD, Henri Slezynger (1957) Career Development Assistant Professor in Chemical Engineering at MIT, and Paul Hergenrother, PhD, Kenneth L. Rinehart Jr. Endowed Chair in Natural Products Chemistry, and Professor of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

“ArrePath is pioneering a highly innovative approach to the discovery of anti-infectives with new mechanisms of action to address antimicrobial resistance that integrates machine learning and imaging technologies into the drug discovery process,” said Lloyd Payne, PhD, ArrePath’s CEO. “Professors Coley and Hergenrother together bring outstanding, visionary leadership in the application of artificial intelligence and machine learning in drug discovery and innovative strategies for the design of drugs to treat antibiotic resistant bacteria, respectively. We look forward to many contributions from them as we continue to build out our platform and advance our initial compounds.”

Professors Coley and Hergenrother will join other members of the company’s distinguished SAB, including, Zemer Gitai, PhD, ArrePath’s scientific founder, SAB Chair, and Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology at Princeton University; Barbara Engelhardt, PhD, Professor of Computational Biology at Stanford University; and Todd A. Black, PhD, Senior Director of Biology for the Global Alliance of TB Drug Development.

Connor’s research focuses on computational and experimental techniques to enable autonomous molecular discovery at the intersection of chemistry, data science, machine learning, with an emphasis on small molecule drug discovery. Key research areas in his laboratory include the design of new neural models for representation learning on molecules, data-driven synthesis planning, in silico strategies for predicting the outcomes of organic reactions, model-guided Bayesian optimization, and de novo molecular generation. Connor is a recipient of C&EN’s “Talented Twelve” award, Forbes Magazine’s “30 Under 30” for Healthcare, the NSF CAREER Award, and the Bayer Early Excellence in Science Award. He received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Caltech and his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from MIT.

Paul’s research interests span the design, synthesis, and evaluation of organic molecules with novel biological properties, including novel anticancer and antibacterial compounds where his group has developed predictive guidelines for compound accumulation in Gram-negative pathogens; chemical biology and synthetic organic chemistry.  His compound discovery work encompasses a variety of approaches, including natural product synthesis, synthesis of complex-and-diverse compounds, structure-based design, and high-throughput screening. Paul’s research has been recognized through many awards, including the 2016 UCB-Ehrlich Award for Excellence in Medicinal Chemistry, the 2017 ACS Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award, and the Eli Lilly Award for Medicinal Chemistry. In 2020, he was named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. Paul received his B.S. in chemistry from the University of Notre Dame and obtained his PhD at the University of Texas at Austin.

About ArrePath

ArrePath is an anti-infective drug discovery company addressing the global health challenge of drug resistant infections. The company’s proprietary machine learning (ML)-based platform enables the rapid and efficient identification of anti-infective agents with new mechanisms of action at the outset of the discovery process, through a deep understanding and analysis of cell and pathogen behavior. The platform’s proof-of-concept has been demonstrated in studies published in Cell by ArrePath’s scientific founder, Zemer Gitai, Ph.D., Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology at Princeton University. The company is funded by the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Insight Partners, Innospark Ventures, Viva BioInnovator, Arimed Capital, PTX Capital, and Nor’easter Ventures. Learn more at www.arrepath.com and follow us on Twitter @ArrePath.

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Robert Gottlieb
RMG Associates, LLC
[email protected]

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ArrePath Appoints Michael Dudley, PharmD, Chairman, Board of Directors

Princeton, NJ, March 24, 2022 – ArrePath today announced the appointment of Michael Dudley, PharmD, as Chairman of the Company’s Board of Directors.

“Dr. Dudley has an outstanding record of research, development and business leadership in anti-infectives in both established and emerging companies,” said Lloyd Payne, PhD, ArrePath’s President and CEO. “We look forward to his guidance and insights on our Board as we advance our machine-learning-based platform for the discovery of new and differentiated classes of anti-infectives.”

Dr. Dudley has more than 30 years of experience in anti-infective R&D and commercialization. During his career, Dr. Dudley has overseen R&D and regulatory approval of multiple antibiotic products, including the discovery and development of a new chemical class of beta-lactamase inhibitors, using the element boron, that resulted in the first FDA-approved product in this class.  He has also led negotiations for over $200 million in multiple public-private partnerships to advance the research and development of antimicrobial agents worldwide.

“There is a critical need for new classes of antibiotics for drug resistant infections,” said Dr. Dudley. “ArrePath is building an exceptional team and pursuing a highly innovative strategy using modern tools and approaches to antimicrobial drug discovery. I welcome the opportunity to work with the ArrePath team and its Board.”

Dr. Dudley is currently President and CEO of Qpex Biopharma, a clinical stage company he has led since its founding and Series A financing in 2018 as a spin-out from The Medicines Company (MDCO). He had joined MDCO following its acquisition of Rempex in 2013, and he remained as CSO and co-leader of the Infectious Disease Business Unit as it developed and launched 3 antibiotic products. Before Rempex/MDCO, he held leadership positions of increasing responsibility at the biotech companies Mpex, Diversa, and Microcide. Prior to his career in industry, he held academic appointments at the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy and Brown University School of Medicine and practiced in patient care and antibiotic stewardship. He has published over 400 scientific papers/book chapters/presentations on the evaluation and clinical use of anti-infectives. He completed undergraduate work at Pepperdine University, his PharmD and residency at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), and a fellowship in infectious diseases at Hartford Hospital.

About ArrePath
ArrePath is an anti-infective drug discovery company addressing the global health challenge of drug resistant infections. The company’s proprietary machine learning (ML)-based platform enables the rapid and efficient identification of anti-infective agents with new mechanisms of action at the outset of the discovery process, through a deep understanding and analysis of pathogen behavior. The platform’s proof-of-concept has been demonstrated in studies published in Cell by ArrePath’s scientific founder, Zemer Gitai, Ph.D., Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology at Princeton University. The company is funded by the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Insight Partners, Innospark Ventures, Viva BioInnovator, Arimed Capital, PTX Capital, and Nor’easter Ventures. Learn more at www.arrepath.com and follow us on Twitter @ArrePath.

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Contact:
Robert Gottlieb
RMG Associates, LLC
[email protected]

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ArrePath Announces $20 Million Seed Financing to Advance its Machine Learning-based Platform for Discovery of Novel Anti-infectives Addressing Antimicrobial Resistance

Dr. Lloyd Payne Named President and CEO

Princeton, NJ, March 3, 2022 – ArrePath, an anti-infective drug discovery company addressing the global health challenge of drug resistant infections, announced today that it has raised $20 million in seed financing to advance its proprietary, machine learning (ML)-based platform for the discovery of new classes of anti-infectives to overcome antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Insight Partners, and Innospark Ventures co-led the financing, which also included Viva BioInnovator, Arimed Capital, PTX Capital, and Nor’easter Ventures.

ArrePath also announced that Dr. Lloyd Payne has been named President and CEO. Dr. Payne, who serves on the Novo REPAIR Impact Fund Scientific Selection Board and the AMR Action Fund Scientific Advisory Board, brings more than 25 years of scientific and business leadership in the discovery and development of anti-infectives. Prior to joining ArrePath, Dr. Payne served at Evotec, as Executive Vice President, Head of Anti-infectives, where he led the company’s anti-infective discovery and translational microbiology businesses. Previously, he founded Euprotec, a life sciences company focused on anti-infective drug discovery and development and served as its CEO until its acquisition by Evotec.

ArrePath is an anti-infective drug discovery company addressing the global health challenge of drug resistant infections, which result in at least 1.27 million deaths, annually (according to recent analysis of data from 2019 published in The Lancet, The GRAM Report). New classes of antibiotics that more effectively treat drug resistant infections and overcome antimicrobial resistance are urgently needed. ArrePath’s approach leverages a novel technology platform to enable the discovery and development of new and differentiated antibiotics by decoding the complex behavior of bacteria when exposed to new chemical entities (known as ‘bacterial autopsies’), leading to the efficient elucidation of biological mechanisms of action. Utilizing proprietary machine learning and imaging technologies, ArrePath’s platform enables an unprecedented ability to identify, optimize, and rapidly develop new classes of anti-infectives with differentiated mechanisms of action compared to those exhibited by existing drugs.

“The Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund is proud to cofound ArrePath with Dr. Zemer Gitai and co-lead the seed series investment to accelerate development of the company’s potentially transformative Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning-based drug discovery platform. Additionally, we are delighted that Dr. Payne, a highly experienced executive and leader in anti-infective drug discovery and development, has joined ArrePath as President and CEO,” said Fei Shen, Ph.D., Managing Director, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund USA. “Antimicrobial resistance is an area with critical unmet medical need and is one of the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund’s investment focuses globally. We are committed to playing a key role in the global ecosystem to solve the commercial challenges the area faces and supporting the next generation of anti-infective medicines,” added Dr. Shen.

“I am delighted to join ArrePath and work with such a talented team to address the central challenge of antimicrobial resistance and further develop the company’s innovative platform technology,” said Dr. Lloyd Payne, ArrePath’s President and CEO. “This financing is a strong vote of confidence, by a global investment syndicate, in our platform and its enormous potential in anti-infective drug discovery. The funding will enable the advancement of our initial leads and expansion of our discovery efforts, as well as the enhancement of our imaging platform and the application of machine learning in the discovery of new drugs to address critical global health challenges.

Dr. Gitai, Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology at Princeton University and colleagues published proof-of-concept for the approach in the journal Cell in June 2020. The research describes the identification of a compound with a novel dual mechanism of action against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria and the platform has since identified additional compounds with novel mechanisms. A Princeton University spin-out, the company has an exclusive option from the university to license intellectual property related to the platform technology, and novel compounds generated through its application.

The worldwide clinical need for new antibiotics that overcome antimicrobial resistance is significant. Analysis by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown that, in the U.S. alone, drug resistant infections result in at least 35,000 deaths annually. It has been estimated that patients spend an aggregate of eight million additional days in the hospital due to drug resistant infections and cost the U.S. healthcare system between $21 billion and $34 billion. A report by the World Health Organization previously estimated that 750,000 people die each year from resistant infections worldwide but this number has recently been updated. The Lancet report (The GRAM Report), published online, in January 2022, analyzed the global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance in 2019 and found “at least 1.27 million deaths per year are directly attributable to AMR.” The UK-commissioned O’Neill Review estimates that “unless action is taken, the burden of deaths from AMR could balloon to 10 million lives each year by 2050, at a cumulative cost to global economic output of 100 trillion USD.”

About Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund

Created in 2010, the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund (BIVF) invests in ground-breaking therapeutics-focused biotechnology companies to drive innovation in biomedical research. BIVF is searching for significant enhancements in patient care through pioneering science and its clinical translation by building long-term relationships with scientists and entrepreneurs. BIVF’s focus is to target unprecedented therapeutic concepts addressing high medical needs in immuno-oncology, regenerative medicine, infectious diseases, and digital health. These may include novel platform technologies to address so far undruggable targets, new generation vaccines and/or new biological entities. BIVF takes an active role with its portfolio companies – delivering significant added value through its own extensive drug discovery, scientific and managerial expertise.  BIVF has a fund volume of 300 million euros and currently supervises a portfolio of more than 40 companies. For more information, please visit www.boehringer-ingelheim-venture.com

About Insight Partners

Insight Partners is a leading global venture capital and private equity firm investing in high-growth technology and software ScaleUp companies that are driving transformative change in their industries. Founded in 1995, Insight Partners has invested in more than 400 companies worldwide and has raised through a series of funds more than $30 billion in capital commitments. Insight’s mission is to find, fund, and work successfully with visionary executives, providing them with practical, hands-on software expertise to foster long-term success. Across its people and its portfolio, Insight encourages a culture around a belief that ScaleUp companies and growth create opportunity for all. For more information on Insight and all its investments, visit www.insightpartners.com or follow us on Twitter @insightpartners.

About Innospark Ventures

Innospark Ventures is a Boston-based early-stage venture fund investing in the AI-powered economy. We believe that computational intelligence (AI) will play an outsized role in the years to come, impacting businesses and industries alike. With decades of entrepreneurial experience across several AI startups, and deep investment expertise across stages, we are thoughtful in our approach to investing. We like foundational, deeply impactful ideas.  We view our investments as the beginning of a partnership versus the culmination of a diligence process. Our unique no-LP model allows for patient, founder-friendly, capital. Since the fall of 2018, Innospark has made 20+ investments across the healthcare, life sciences, B2B enterprise, cybersecurity, and education sectors. We are excited to partner with the next generation of founders and can be reached at: [email protected]

About ArrePath

ArrePath is an anti-infective drug discovery company addressing the global health challenge of drug resistant infections. The company’s proprietary machine learning (ML)-based platform enables the rapid and efficient identification of anti-infective agents with new mechanisms of action at the outset of the discovery process, through a deep understanding and analysis of pathogen behavior. The platform’s proof-of-concept has been demonstrated in studies published in Cell by ArrePath’s scientific founder, Zemer Gitai, Ph.D., Edwin Grant Conklin Professor of Biology at Princeton University. The company is funded by the Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Insight Partners, Innospark Ventures, Viva BioInnovator, Arimed Capital, PTX Capital, and Nor’easter Ventures. Learn more at www.arrepath.com and follow us on Twitter @ArrePath.

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Contact:

Robert Gottlieb
RMG Associates, LLC
[email protected]
Mobile: +1 857-891-9091