The biopharma company Lario Therapeutics has announced that it has received a total of $2.4m in grant funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) and Wellcome to support the continued expansion of its neuronal calcium channel drug discovery platform.
The funding provides significant validation of Lario's efforts to develop selective small-molecule inhibitors targeting voltage-gated neuronal calcium channels.
In a statement, Lario announced that it will use the proceeds from these awards to expand its research on Parkinson's disease. Additionally, the company is exploring another high-priority area: post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The $1.5m grant from MJFF supports the progression of Lario's work on CaV1.3-linked Parkinson's disease biology, a target with strong mechanistic relevance to disease progression.
CaV1.3 has recently been highlighted by MJFF as one of the most promising drug targets through its Targets to Therapies initiative, an expert-led programme that prioritises and de-risks disease-modifying targets in Parkinson's disease.
Lario has received a $900,000 grant from Wellcome to further validate the CaV2.3 target for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
This funding builds on recent large-scale human genetics research that has linked variations in the gene encoding CaV2.3 (CACNA1E) to a higher risk of developing the condition.
Lario stated that this grant complements the previously announced $6m grant from MJFF in 2024, which supports preclinical work on CaV2.3 as a potential disease-modifying approach for Parkinson's disease.
Additionally, the research will explore the therapeutic potential of selectively inhibiting CaV2.3 across a range of central nervous system disorders.
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