AstronauTx: targeting astrocytes to treat neurodegenerative diseases

AstronauTx aims to correct the disrupted physiology that drives neurodegeneration by creating small molecules that target astrocytes, a long underappreciated cell type in the brain. The company announced a $61 million series A round this week, led by the Novartis Venture Fund, and is eyeing Alzheimer’s disease for its first programs.

Though astrocytes were initially thought of as an undifferentiated substance — a glue — that holds the brain together, then as a collection of essentially passive support cells linking neurons to the blood supply, the past 20 years have brought an explosion of work illuminating the diverse roles they play, especially at synapses. Some of that work has linked astrocyte dysfunction to disease...