Life Biosciences announced the close of a fully-subscribed $80 million Series D financing, the proceeds of which will enable the company to complete its recently initiated phase 1 clinical trial of ER-100, an epigenetic therapy candidate intended for age-related optic neuropathies.
Life Bio’s Partial Epigenetic Reprogramming (PER) platform is designed to partially reprogram the epigenome of aged and injured cells to a younger and healthier state via expression of three transcription factors — OCT4, SOX2 and KLF4 (OSK). By targeting a root cause of aging at the epigenetic level, this approach offers the potential to address a wide range of age-related diseases across organs and systems.
ER-100, the company’s lead therapy, uses a modified adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector to deliver OSK to retinal cells. Life Bio received FDA authorization to proceed with first-in-human studies of ER-100 on January 15, 2026. The phase 1 study is designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of ER-100 in optic neuropathies — open angle glaucoma and non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy.
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