Metri Bio has raised $5 million in an oversubscribed pre-seed financing round led by Pillar VC, with participation from Pace Ventures, Slocum Management, Navec Investments, and angel investors. The Boston-based biotechnology company is developing therapies for endometrial diseases.
The Boston-based company emerged from stealth with the funding announcement. Metri Bio was co-founded by Berna Sozen, PhD, Assistant Professor at Yale School of Medicine, Ashley Abel, PhD, who serves as CEO, and Kathy Potts, PhD, who serves as COO.
“Metri Bio is grounded in the belief that meaningful innovation in women’s health demands a deep understanding of the biology driving disease,” said CEO Ashley Abel, PhD. “Endometriosis affects one in ten women, yet treatments still rely on hormone suppression and repeat surgeries that rarely deliver lasting relief and often cause intolerable side effects.”
Metri Bio’s technology is based on research from the Sozen Lab at Yale. The company has developed a 3D endometrial modeling technology capable of modeling diseases of the endometrium, including endometriosis. The platform enables access to biological mechanisms that could not be studied previously, according to the company.
The platform operates as an integrated system for discovery and development, allowing the team to identify molecular drivers of disease and guide creation of therapeutic candidates. The technology extends beyond endometriosis to additional endometrial pathologies.
“It is absurd that a disease paradigm of this magnitude has no good treatment options,” said Thomas de Vlaam, Partner at Pillar VC and chairman of Metri Bio. “I’m confident that Metri Bio will play a pivotal role in helping the nearly 200 million women suffering from endometriosis receive the care they deserve.”
Sozen is an internationally recognized researcher in human organoid and developmental modeling technologies. Her work was highlighted as Nature Method’s 2023 Method of the Year. Potts has a background in translational research and early program development in women’s health and hematology.
The funding will accelerate development of Metri’s discovery platform and therapeutic programs for endometriosis. The company will expand its team and research and development operations as it moves toward preclinical studies and future trials.
