CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – September 22, 2014 – Navitor Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced that it has been named by FierceBiotech as one of 2014’s Fierce 15 biotechnology companies, designating it as one of the most promising private biotechnology companies in the industry. Navitor is developing novel medicines through targeting cellular nutrient signaling by selectively modulating mTORC1, a fundamental and clinically-validated pathway which regulates cell growth and function
“Navitor has zeroed in on a very specific biological pathway with some impressively broad applications, and the company’s technology has the potential to generate novel treatments for a few of the world’s most widespread diseases,” says Damian Garde, editor of FierceBiotech. “That promise was enough to convince some A-list investors, and Navitor is well on its way to addressing some ambitious goals.”
Navitor’s proprietary drug discovery platform is designed to develop first-in-class selective modulators of mTORC1 to address a wide range of diseases, including metabolic, neurodegenerative, autoimmune and musculoskeletal diseases, as well as several rare disorders. The company has exclusive access from the Whitehead Institute to fundamental intellectual property relating to nutrient sensing via the mTORC1 pathway from the laboratory of David M. Sabatini, MD, PhD, Professor of Biology at MIT, Member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, and Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Sabatini, Navitor’s scientific founder, has led groundbreaking research in the molecular regulation of the mTORC1 pathway, and his discoveries are seminal contributions to the field of cellular nutrient signaling.
“We are honored to be recognized as one of the innovative companies selected for this year’s FierceBiotech ‘Fierce 15’,” said George P. Vlasuk, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer of Navitor. “We are harnessing newly discovered nutrient signaling mechanisms of mTORC1 that drive protein synthesis and cellular growth to allow the development of novel medicines for a wide range of chronic diseases and rare disorders. The prospect of developing innovative medicines that can significantly impact the lives of patients truly motivates our experienced team and world-class scientific advisory board, and we look forward to building our company around Navitor’s proprietary technology platform.”
The Fierce 15 celebrates the spirit of being “fierce” – championing innovation and creativity, even in the face of intense competition. This is FierceBiotech’s twelfth annual Fierce 15 selection. A complete list of “Fierce 15” companies can be found online at www.fiercebiotech.com/fierce15.
Every year FierceBiotech evaluates hundreds of private companies from around the world for its annual Fierce 15 list, which is based on a variety of factors such as the strength of its technology, partnerships, venture backers and a competitive market position. An internationally recognized daily report reaching a network of over 270,000 biotech and pharma industry professionals, FierceBiotech provides subscribers with an authoritative analysis of the day’s top stories.
About FierceBiotech
FierceBiotech is the biotech industry’s daily monitor, an email newsletter and web resource providing the latest biotech news, articles, and resources related to clinical trials, drug discovery, FDA approval, FDA regulation, patent news, pharma news, biotech company news and more. More than 150,000 top biotech professionals rely on FierceBiotech for an insider briefing on the day’s top stories. Signup is free at www.fiercebiotech.com/signup.
About Navitor Pharmaceuticals
Navitor Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines by targeting cellular nutrient signaling pathways. The company’s proprietary drug discovery platform targets mTORC1, which responds to and integrates the cell’s response to nutrient availability and plays a key role in protein synthesis and cellular growth. Navitor’s therapeutics are designed to selectively modulate the cellular signals that are aberrant in disease processes caused by the dysregulation of mTORC1 activity to address a wide range of diseases, including metabolic, neurodegenerative, autoimmune and musculoskeletal diseases, as well as several rare disorders. The company’s founding intellectual property is based on the groundbreaking discoveries related to the mTORC1 pathway and nutrient signaling mechanisms by Dr. David Sabatini at The Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. The company is backed by leading financial and corporate investors, including Polaris Partners, Atlas Venture, Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, SR One and The Longevity Fund. For more information, please visit www.navitorpharma.com.
CONTACTS:
Rebecca Friend
FierceBiotech
202-824-5050
rebecca@fiercemarkets.com
For Navitor:
Kathryn Morris
The Yates Network
845-635-9828
kathryn@theyatesnetwork.com