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Revier launches with EUR 6m bet on selective HDAC inhibition

Revier launches with EUR 6m bet on selective HDAC inhibition

Heidelberg, Germany-based Revier Therapeutics has closed a EUR 6 million seed financing round to advance a preclinical pipeline of selective class IIa histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors targeting cardiometabolic disease, marking the company's public launch after incorporating in 2023.

KHAN Technology Transfer Fund II led the round, with participation from High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), VORNvc, and private investors through Revier Invest Heidelberg. The company said proceeds will fund preclinical development of its two lead programs and build out operational, scientific, and clinical functions. No prior funding rounds have been publicly disclosed; the company operated in stealth from incorporation until this announcement.

Revier's platform is based on research from Prof. Johannes Backs, Director of the Institute of Experimental Cardiology at Heidelberg University and the company's scientific founder, whose laboratory has investigated the role of class IIa HDACs in cardiometabolic disease. Revier is developing orally available small molecules designed to selectively inhibit pathological class IIa HDAC enzymatic activity while preserving their non-enzymatic functions, with the aim of avoiding toxicities associated with less selective pan-HDAC inhibitors.

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The lead program targets heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), which accounts for roughly half of heart failure cases and remains an area of substantial unmet need despite recent therapeutic advances. A second program targets atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), where HDAC9 — a class IIa member — has been linked to vascular inflammation and plaque progression, with human genetic evidence from genome-wide association studies supporting its causal role. Both programs remain preclinical.

Matthias Dewenter, who co-founded Revier and serves as Chief Scientific Officer, conducted translational cardiovascular research within the Backs laboratory at Heidelberg University Hospital. The company's Chief Medical Officer, Prof. Norbert Frey, directs the Department of Cardiology at Heidelberg University Hospital and is positioned to lead eventual clinical translation of the programs.


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