Syremis Therapeutics, a newly launched clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on severe mental illness, has secured $165 million in Series A financing to advance a pipeline targeting some of the most persistent gaps in psychiatric treatment.
The company was founded by a leadership team with deep expertise in neuroscience and drug development, including veterans from Teva Pharmaceuticals. Syremis is led by co-founder and CEO Elisabeth Kogan, alongside co-founders Elena Kagan, chief development officer, and Menashe Levy, CTO. Collectively, the team brings experience spanning discovery, clinical development, and large-scale pharmaceutical operations.
Read More – Alimento Agro Foods Raises INR 52 Cr in Series A Funding Led by IvyCap Ventures
The Series A round was co-led by Dexcel Pharma and Third Rock Ventures, with participation from Bain Capital Life Sciences, GV (formerly Google Ventures), QVT, and Pictet. The funding will support Syremis’ programs through clinical proof-of-concept studies, a critical milestone in neuropsychiatric drug development.
Syremis enters the market at a time when schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders remain among the most debilitating and underserved conditions, affecting more than 20 million people worldwide. Patients face high relapse rates, significant disability, and reduced life expectancy, while current therapies often struggle to balance efficacy with tolerability.
The company’s lead program, ST-905, is a dual M1/M4 muscarinic agonist currently in Phase 1 development for schizophrenia and other neuropsychiatric disorders. According to Syremis, ST-905 may support once-daily oral dosing as well as a long-acting injectable formulation, potentially improving adherence in psychiatric care. Interest in muscarinic-based therapies is growing as alternatives to dopamine-focused treatments, which have long dominated schizophrenia care but are often associated with significant side effects.
Syremis is also advancing ST-901, a novel NMDA antagonist in IND-enabling studies, with plans to develop it for major depressive disorder and bipolar depression—conditions with high unmet medical need where many patients fail to respond adequately to existing therapies. Both ST-905 and ST-901 were originally discovered and developed at Clexio Biosciences, where all three founders previously worked, before being spun out into Syremis Therapeutics.
The company’s board includes senior leaders from its investor base, as well as Steve Paul, Syremis co-founder and former CEO and chair of Karuna Therapeutics, and a former senior executive at Eli Lilly.
