MDA Awards Venture Philanthropy Funding of More Than $1M to AavantiBio to Develop Gene-Targeting Therapy for Friedreich’s Ataxia

The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) and UF Innovate | The Hub resident client AavantiBio, a biotechnology company developing a gene-targeting therapy for Friedreich’s Ataxia (FA), announced the award of MDA Venture Philanthropy (MVP) funding totaling $1,076,232 to advance AavantiBio’s phase 2 clinical trial of a gene-replacement therapy for the disease.

MVP is MDA’s drug development program, which is exclusively focused on funding the discovery and clinical application of treatments and cures for neuromuscular disorders. MVP evaluates and makes targeted investments in for-profit and not-for-profit companies and academics developing therapeutics.

Co-founders Manuela Corti, PT, Ph.D., assistant professor of Pediatrics at the University of Florida, and Barry Byrne, MD, Ph.D., associate chair of Pediatrics and director of the Powell Gene Therapy Center at UF, started working with the FA community five years ago and are thrilled about their new partnership with the MDA.

Learn more about MDA Awards Venture Philanthropy Funding of More Than $1M to AavantiBio to Develop Gene-Targeting Therapy for Friedreich’s Ataxia.