Antibiotic resistance is a growing problem, and it’s one that large pharmaceutical companies have largely abandoned. Some startups are filling the gap, and a new one, ArrePath, has novel molecules with a different approach that could overcome the challenges of drug resistance. The young company has emerged with $20 million in seed funding.

ArrePath was founded by Zemer Gitai, a professor of biology at Princeton University where his research focuses on the cell biology of bacteria. That research includes applying quantitative tools to antibiotics discovery. Gitai and his colleagues identified a single compound that has two mechanisms of action that together provide anti-infective activity against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Also important, the compound provides that antibiotic activity without leading to drug resistance. The research was published in the journal Cell in 2020. According to the paper, the compound outperformed combination treatments in killing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Also, a derivative of that molecule showed efficacy against gonorrhea in a mouse model.

“This promising antibiotic lead suggests that combining different [mechanisms of action] onto a single chemical scaffold may be an underappreciated approach to targeting challenging bacterial pathogens,” the scientists wrote.

ArrePath was founded late last year and is currently based in Princeton Innovation Center Biolabs, the university’s coworking lab and office space for tech startups. The company says it discovers new antibiotic compounds by performing “bacterial autopsies” in which the behavior of bacteria is decoded when they are exposed to new molecules. This approach reveals biological mechanisms of action for potential drugs. The company employs artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, combined with imaging technologies, to identify, optimize, and rapidly develop its new classes of anti-infective candidates. The company says these molecules have differentiated mechanisms of action compared to already available products.

In addition to the new funding, ArrePath announced the appointment of Lloyd Payne as the startup’s CEO. Payne was most recently at German biotech company Evotec, where he was executive vice president, head of anti-infectives. Before that, he was the founder and CEO of Euprotec, an anti-infective drug discovery and development biotech that was acquired by Evotec in 2014. In a prepared statement, Payne said that the funding enables ArrePath to advance its lead compounds and expand the startup’s discovery efforts. The company will also enhance its imaging platform and the application of machine learning in its drug research.

The seed financing was co-led by Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, Insight Partners, and Innospark Ventures. Other participants included Viva BioInnovator, Arimed Capital, PTX Capital, and Nor’easter Ventures.

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