Marin County dementia drug startup gets venture capital infusion

A Novato startup company that is researching the connection between Alzheimer’s disease and a bacteria found in gum disease has received backing from a local venture capital firm.

Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures announced its investment in Lighthouse Pharmaceuticals, based at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, on June 15. Zachary Kushel, founder and managing partner of the investment firm, said Lighthouse is the first medical biotech firm working on drug treatments in its portfolio.

Lighthouse is one of 20 startups in the North Bay that the firm has invested in since its founding in 2021, Kushel said.

Lighthouse co-founder and chief executive Casey Lynch of Sonoma said the startup has already received a $49.2 million grant from the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health, for a nationwide clinical trial of 300 patients at 40 sites.

In addition to the NIH grant, Lighthouse Pharmaceuticals received $500,000 from Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures as part of a $12 million funding round led by Boston venture capital firm Double Point Ventures.

The trial will determine if a drug that targets a bacteria called P. gingivalis, which is associated with gum disease, can slow or level cognitive decline in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. Based on an earlier clinical trial, Lynch estimates that up to 40% of people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s could carry P. gingivalis.

“We know that infections can cause neurological disease,” Lynch told more than 350 attendees at Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures’ annual gathering in May at the College of Marin campus in Novato. “If you infect an animal with this bacteria in their mouths, it gets to their brain and causes cognitive impairment and degeneration in the memory centers of their brain.”

Lynch and co-founder Stephen Dominy of Novato are working to develop a daily pill that Alzheimer’s patients with P. gingivalis could take to slow or level decline in cognition, she said.

Recruitment is under way for people interested in participating in the clinical trials. Information on the trials is online at springclinicaltrial.com.

Lynch said researchers are identifying people who would be candidates for the trials by a simple saliva test.

Kushel said that of the startups in the firm’s investment portfolio, one has already achieved what is called a successful “exit,” or being bought out by a larger firm. Sageful AI offers a healthcare coaching tool that uses artificial intelligence. It was acquired in February by the firm Practicing Excellence.

Kushel said Sageful was ahead of the curve in that the “exit” timeline goal for most startups is about seven to 10 years. Sageful exited in about five years.

In general, momentum is building to keep growing the firm’s investment portfolio, Kushel said.

“We’re continuing to deploy capital into Marin and Sonoma counties,” he said. “It’s a really exciting time to be investing in innovation. What we’re focused on is making sure that the North Bay, given all the intellectual capital that’s here, that we all see positive benefits from it in terms of companies and jobs for the community.”