Korsana Biosciences is going public through a reverse merger with Cyclerion Therapeutics, backed by a $370 million private placement from existing investors. The deal comes just over a month after the company emerged from stealth with a $150 million Series A. The newly merged entity will advance KRSA-028, a next-generation shuttled antibody targeting amyloid beta for Alzheimer's disease treatment, towards clinical trials. Korsana is also developing a pipeline of additional candidates for neurodegenerative diseases. The substantial financing positions the company to progress its lead programme and expand its therapeutic portfolio in the neurodegenerative disease space.

Korsana Biosciences taps dr. Mark Vignola as CFO. Vignola brings extensive leadership experience in corporate finance across the biotech industry. March 16, 2026 Associate Editor Korsana Biosciences Inc., a biotechnology company discovering and developing novel therapies to reduce the burden of neurodegenerative diseases, has welcomed Mark Vignola, Ph.D., as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO). "We are excited to welcome Mark as our Chief Financial Officer, with his extensive experience as a strategic financial leader to biotech companies and strong track record of advancing companies through major inflection points," said Jonathan Violin, Ph.D., President and CEO of Korsana. "Mark is an outstanding addition to the executive team and will undoubtedly help our growing organization advance our pipeline of potential best-in-class therapies for neurodegenerative disorders." Experience. Vignola brings over 15 years of experience and is a proven leader in implementing financial and operational strategies to create long-term value for shareholders across the biotech industry. He most recently served as the CFO of Terns Pharmaceuticals, where he led the company's crossover financing, initial public offering (IPO), and multiple follow-on offerings. Prior to joining Terns, he was CFO at Applied Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company where he led several financing rounds. Earlier in his career, Vignola was Head of Corporate Development and Investor Relations at Intercept Pharmaceuticals and a biotechnology equity research analyst at Needham & Company. Vignola earned his B.S. in Biology from Boston College and his Ph.D. in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology from Duke University. "I am thrilled to join Korsana and help support our mission to deliver best-in-class treatment options to patients who deserve better," Vignola said. "We are well positioned to advance the next generation of therapies for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, with a clear path to long-term growth and value creation. I look forward to partnering with the executive team and the Board of Directors."

Alzheimer's focused Korsana emerges from stealth with $175m in backing. Boston-based Korsana Biosciences has emerged from stealth with $175 million to develop antibody therapeutics for neurodegenerative disorders. Nnenna Ohaka, Reporter, Partnering and Investment February 19, 2026 The funding package includes a $25 million seed round and a $150 million Series A funding round with support from investors such as Wellington Management, J.P. Morgan Life Sciences Private Capital, and Sanofi Ventures. "We are excited to come together with the rest of this investor syndicate to support Korsana's launch," Nilesh Kumar, head of biotech private investments at Wellington Management, said. Many CNS-focused biotech companies have successfully raised capital, despite it being more difficult to do so. Dirk Beher, CEO of FundaMental Pharma, spoke on the importance of having a clear plan for a clinical candidate to gain investors' interest. Korsana's lead candidate is KRSA-028, a monoclonal antibody designed to target and clear amyloid beta. This is the misfolded protein that forms sticky plaques in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. KRSA-028 uses a "shuttle" strategy to better penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB). BioXconomy previously reported on AbbVie's $1.4 billion acquisition of Aliada Therapeutics and its similar asset, ALIA-1758. This drug candidate is also an antibody that moves across the BBB blood-brain barrier to remove amyloid plaques causative in Alzheimer's disease. "Alzheimer's disease represents a massive and growing unmet need, with the US patient population projected to double to approximately 13 million by 2050. Only two disease-modifying therapies have been approved to treat Alzheimer's, and both carry safety warnings, offer only modest efficacy, and impose a high burden of care," Jonathan Violiin, CEO of Korsana, said in a statement. "Patients deserve better options than what is currently available, and we believe our lead program, KRSA-028, can deliver a best-in-class product to treat Alzheimer's." The company plans to initiate first-in-human clinical studies by early 2027, with initial safety data expected mid-year and proof-of-concept results showing plaque reduction by year's end. It is expected that the initial financing will fund the biotech's activity until 2028. Korsana is also building a pipeline targeting other neurodegenerative diseases, although details are yet to be disclosed. "Korsana is advancing the next generation of therapies for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, with a clear path to creating value for patients," Andrew Gottesdiener, said. "Together, we are committed to delivering better medicines to patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases." In other CNS news, Lario Therapeutics has been awarded $2.4 million in funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation and Wellcome to support the development of its neuronal calcium channel drug discovery platform. Specifically, the grant will be used to expand the biotech's work into epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Mar 10, 2026 TO Mar 11, 2026 Investival Showcase USA brings visionary life-science innovators together to secure game-changing capital and partnerships. Reporter, Partnering and Investment Nnenna Ohaka is a Partnering and Investment reporter at BioXconomy. Equipped with a degree in biomedical sciences from the University of Warwick, she currently reports on the latest in the partnering and investment space, as well as drug modalities. Feb 20, 2026 Feb 18, 2026 Feb 17, 2026 Feb 16, 2026 See BioXconomy first on Google Top Stories Expert insights without the effort! Stay ahead of the curve with our free, topic-specific enewsletters delivered straight to your inbox.