HexemBio has launched with a $10.4M seed round led by Draper Associates to develop a blood stem cell rejuvenation therapy. The Berkeley biotech's platform, called the Synthetic Human Yolk Sac, recreates the embryonic microenvironment where blood stem cells first form — avoiding gene editing or chemical reprogramming. Foundational research was published in Nature in February 2024. The lead clinical programme targets bone marrow transplant in blood cancers like AML and ALL, has received FDA Orphan Drug Designation, and is targeting first-in-human trials in 2027. The advisory board includes MIT's Robert Langer and Harvard's George Church.
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