One is enough for Rib-X

Instead of focusing on multiple targets with no clinical proof of concept, Rib-X Pharmaceuticals Inc. has concentrated technology around one validated target, which it hopes to mine to develop multiple products. The approach is being backed by the company's VCs, who last week gave Rib-X $51 million in a series B round.

"Over 50% of antibiotics work at the ribosome," said Graham Johnson, vice president of drug discovery at Rib-X (New Haven, Conn.). The bacterial ribosome, which is required for protein synthesis, is composed of a 30S and 50S subunit...