Crystalys Therapeutics has secured $130 million in series B funding to advance its gout drug dotinurad through phase 3 trials and prepare for commercial launch. Frazier Life Sciences led the round, with participation from Wellington Management, HBM Healthcare Investments, and existing backers including Novo Holdings. The financing comes less than a year after Crystalys raised $205 million in series A. The funds will support two ongoing registration-directed phase 3 trials and a phase 2 study, extending the company's runway through multiple clinical milestones. Dotinurad is a once-daily oral URAT1 inhibitor that helps kidneys excrete uric acid. The drug is already approved in Japan, China, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. Crystalys acquired rights to dotinurad from Urica Therapeutics in July 2024 for 35% equity and a 3% royalty on future sales.

Ray Therapeutics, a US clinical-stage biotech company co-founded by optogenetics pioneer Zhuo-Hua Pan and Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, has raised $125 million in an oversubscribed Series C round led by Janus Henderson Investors. Adage Capital Management, Franklin Templeton, Invus and Marshall Wace participated, with existing investors including 4BIO Capital and Novo Holdings also contributing. The company is developing optogenetic therapies for degenerative retinal diseases. Its lead candidate, RTx-015, targets retinitis pigmentosa and has received RMAT designation from the FDA and PRIME designation from the EMA. A second programme, RTx-021, focuses on macular diseases including Stargardt disease. The funding will advance RTx-015 through late-stage clinical trials and accelerate RTx-021's development. Ray's technology uses modified light-sensitive proteins to restore vision by reprogramming surviving retinal neurons.

The Protein Brewery has raised an €18 million ($20.5 million) Series B extension led by ABN AMRO Sustainable Impact Fund, with participation from Invest-NL, Novo Holdings, Madeli and Brabant Development Agency. The Dutch startup produces mycoprotein through biomass fermentation from Rhizomucor pusillus mycelium. The funding will expand production capacity at its Dutch facility to over 2,000 tonnes, support European sales launching in Q3, fund clinical studies and back regulatory applications in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and India. The company recently secured approval to market its mycelium ingredient in the EU. However, the FDA advised the firm to withdraw its GRAS notice in the US due to deficiencies including flawed animal study designs and insufficient safety data. CEO Thijs Bosch says the setback will not derail US expansion plans.