Acta Pharmaceuticals, a Boston-based biotechnology company developing treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, has announced $24 million in total seed financing to advance its drug development pipeline focused on early intervention and potential disease prevention.
The company identified the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Foundation, Dolby Family Ventures, Gamma Bio Investors, and several family offices and mission-driven investors among its shareholders.
Founded in 2022 by George Alex and Dr. Rudolph E. Tanzi, Acta Pharmaceuticals is working to translate neuroscience research into investigational treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. Alex serves as co-founder and CEO, while Tanzi, a neuroscientist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, is the company’s scientific founder.
Acta’s lead drug candidate, GSM-779690T, is an oral gamma-secretase modulator designed to reduce production of amyloid-beta 42 (Aβ42), a protein associated with plaque formation in the brain. The investigational therapy is also designed to increase shorter amyloid-beta peptides, including Aβ37 and Aβ38.
The funding will support the clinical development of GSM-779690T, including a Phase 1 study designed to assess safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics in healthy adult volunteers. The company has identified October 2026 as the planned clinical evaluation period. The candidate remains investigational, with its safety and efficacy in humans not yet established.
Acta is also advancing a Combination Therapies program based on laboratory models of human brain cells developed by Tanzi and colleagues at Massachusetts General Hospital. The research platform, known as Alzheimer’s-in-a-Dish, allows researchers to evaluate combinations of existing drugs and other compounds for potential effects on Alzheimer’s-related pathology.
The company has licensed intellectual property from Massachusetts General Hospital relating to selected therapeutic combinations and plans to advance candidates toward clinical evaluation.
