Celea Therapeutics, a biotechnology startup testing a next-generation treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, said in a Thursday announcement it has brought in $180 million to continue its work.
Launched in 2025, the PureTech Health spinout is working on a medicine that it says is a retooled version of pirfenidone, also known as Roche’s Esbriet, a drug that slows the progression of scarring in the lungs.
The venture round was backed by RA Capital Management, Leaps by Bayer and PureTech, as well as two other unnamed funds. The proceeds from this fundraising will be used to launch its drug deupirfenidone into late-stage testing in the third quarter of 2026.
"People living with IPF continue to face a devastating disease with limited treatment options, and we believe deupirfenidone has the potential to deliver meaningful improvements for patients," said Sven Dethlefs, the company's CEO, in a statement.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a rare condition where scar tissue builds up in the lungs. It causes difficulty breathing, degrades organ function and, eventually, causes death.
Aside from Esbriet, only two other medicines are approved to treat pulmonary fibrosis. Ofev, made by Boehringer Ingelheim, blocks some of the cell-surface receptors linked to fibrosis. The pharmaceutical giant has in recent years launched Jascayd, which slows the decline of lung function and goes after a different target.
But those medicines only help with symptom management, and have varying tolerability issues.
Data from a Phase 2 study released in late 2024 showed that Celea’s experimental therapy slowed lung function decline when compared to a placebo over a six-month period. Leerink Partners analyst Faisal Khurshid wrote in a note to clients at the time that the drug showed “improved efficacy and similar to slightly better tolerability” than pirfenidone.
The company said deupirfenidone could also be used to treat other fibrotic diseases.
Several other biotechs are working on pulmonary fibrosis drugs. Avalyn Pharma, which recently reeled in $300 million in an initial public offering, is developing an updated, inhalable version of Esbriet, as well as a new iteration of Ofev and a drug that combines the two. United Therapeutics, meanwhile, could win approval for its lung drug Tyvaso in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis later this year, based on data from a successful late-stage trial.
Bristol Myers Squibb and Contineum Therapeutics also have their own therapies in testing.
