Latus Bio has announced the close of a $97 million Series A financing round to advance its pipeline of scalable gene therapies for central nervous system and peripheral diseases. The financing includes a $43 million extension led by 8VC, with participation from existing backers DCVC Bio, BioAdvance, Benjamin Franklin Technology Partners, Modi Ventures, Gaingels, and Hatch BioFund. New investors Korea Development Bank and Helen’s Pink Sky Foundation also joined the round, strengthening support for the company’s next stage of development.
Funding to Advance Lead Programs
The proceeds are expected to support Latus Bio through key clinical and preclinical milestones, including initial data from its two most advanced therapeutic programs. These programs include LTS-201 for Huntington’s disease and LTS-101 for late-infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis type 2, also known as CLN2 disease. The company will also use the capital to progress additional candidates emerging from its proprietary adeno-associated virus, or AAV, discovery platform.
A Scalable Gene Therapy Strategy
Latus Bio is positioning itself around a gene therapy model designed to reach larger patient populations than those traditionally addressed by the field. Its approach combines engineered AAV capsids with carefully selected clinical delivery routes to improve tissue targeting while using low therapeutic doses. The company says this strategy could support better safety, manufacturing efficiency, cost control, and broader scalability across multiple disease areas.
Huntington’s Disease Program
LTS-201 is Latus Bio’s first program targeting a large-rare central nervous system disorder and is being developed as a potential treatment for Huntington’s disease. The investigational therapy is designed to reduce expression of MSH3, a DNA repair enzyme linked to somatic repeat expansion, a process believed to contribute to disease progression. Latus Bio expects to submit an Investigational New Drug application for LTS-201 in the third quarter of 2026, with preclinical work showing targeted delivery to medium spiny neurons in the deep brain.
CLN2 Disease and Platform Validation
The company’s LTS-101 program targets CLN2 disease, a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disorder that affects children and currently carries significant unmet medical need. LTS-101 has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to proceed under an IND, along with Orphan Drug, Rare Pediatric Disease, and Fast Track designations. Latus Bio expects a first-in-human investigator-initiated trial to begin in the third quarter of 2026, with initial safety, biomarker, and clinical findings anticipated by the end of that year.
Investor and Company Outlook
Latus Bio’s leadership said the financing reflects confidence in the company’s ability to broaden the use of gene therapy beyond ultra-rare indications. Chief Executive Officer P. Peter Ghoroghchian said the company aims to build a repeatable development model by pairing proprietary capsids with clinically grounded delivery strategies. 8VC Partner Francisco Gimenez said the platform may help address long-standing barriers to gene therapy access while creating a meaningful opportunity in Huntington’s disease.
The Series A financing gives Latus Bio additional resources to move its lead programs toward clinical validation while expanding a broader pipeline of AAV-based therapies. Near-term milestones for LTS-201 and LTS-101 will be central to determining whether the company’s platform can deliver efficient, low-dose gene therapies across larger and more commercially significant disease areas. As Latus Bio advances its CNS programs and explores applications in kidney, eye, heart, and muscle diseases, the company is seeking to help redefine the scale at which gene therapy can be developed and delivered.