Venrock spreads HAE bets

Venrock is broadening its portfolio of oral hereditary angioedema therapy investments by leading a $23 million series B round that will allow Attune Pharmaceuticals to move its lead plasma kallikrein (KLKB1) inhibitor into Phase II testing.

Venrock was an early investor in HAE company Dyax Corp., which was acquired by Shire plc and is now part of Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4502; NYSE:TAK). Dyax's HAE program became Takhzyro lanadelumab, an infusion which was approved in 2018 in the U.S. and E.U. as a prophylactic...