Novartis has partnered with Versant Ventures to establish Borealis Biosciences, a new biotechnology company based in Vancouver, Canada, focused on developing xRNA-based medicines for kidney diseases.
Borealis emerges as an independent entity, leveraging the scientific talent and facilities from Novartis' 2023 acquisition of Chinook Therapeutics, a company also centered on kidney disease research.
As part of the deal, Novartis divested its legacy Chinook site and transferred specific employees to Borealis, which will continue drug discovery efforts in renal science. Novartis has also secured the option to acquire two future development-ready programs from Borealis.
Borealis, supported by Series A financing from Novartis and Versant, will focus on advancing innovative xRNA technology, which targets the body's natural mRNA to regulate protein production involved in disease.