NASH play Jecure raises $20M in debut

Jecure Therapeutics Inc. (San Diego, Calif.) raised $20 million in a series A round from sole investor Versant Ventures. The newco has exclusive rights to a platform to discover and develop therapeutics for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) developed at the University of California San Diego by Ariel Feldstein, Jecure's scientific founder. Feldstein is UCSD's division chief of gastroenterology.

Jecure's lead program is a small molecule inhibitor of an undisclosed target that is a pro-inflammatory driver in NASH. The company expects to select a lead candidate this year...