Cyllene Therapeutics has closed a €33 million Series C financing round to advance clinical development of its lead DNA medicine candidate, EG110A, for severe neurogenic bladder conditions and expand its proprietary HERMES non-replicating HSV-1 platform.
The company, formerly known as EG 427, also announced its rebrand alongside the financing. The Cyllene name references the mythological birthplace of Hermes, reflecting the company’s HERMES platform, which is designed to support the delivery of localised DNA medicines for chronic neurological disorders.
The Series C round was co-led by GordonMD Global Investments and Merck Ventures, an affiliate of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Additional investors included T. Andera Partners, Bpifrance Investissement through its InnoBio 3 Fund, and Lamond Ventures.
Cyllene plans to use the proceeds to progress EG110A toward later-stage development in neurogenic detrusor overactivity, or NDO, associated with spinal cord injury. NDO is a bladder dysfunction caused by neurological damage that can lead to urinary urgency, involuntary bladder contractions and frequent urinary incontinence episodes.
The company said early clinical data from ongoing studies have shown substantial and sustained reductions in urinary incontinence episodes for at least nine months after treatment with EG110A in patients with spinal cord injury-related NDO. Cyllene has not disclosed detailed efficacy figures from the studies.
EG110A is being developed as a localised DNA medicine intended to provide durable therapeutic activity while limiting systemic exposure. The programme is based on the company’s HERMES platform, a non-replicating herpes simplex virus type 1 delivery system designed to enable targeted gene delivery in neurological diseases.
Cyllene expects to initiate a Phase IIb/III study of EG110A in 2027. Beyond spinal cord injury-related NDO, the company plans to evaluate the candidate in overactive bladder and explore additional neurological indications.
Craig Gordon, MD, founder, chief executive officer and chief investment officer of GordonMD, said the investment was driven by EG110A’s early clinical findings and the broader potential of the HERMES platform.
“The preliminary clinical results of EG110A support the application of precision therapeutics within neuro-urology,” Gordon said. “With this funding, Cyllene is positioned for global expansion into major neurological indications including pain and migraine.”
Philippe Chambon, MD, PhD, chief executive officer of Cyllene, said the financing will support both the advancement of EG110A and expansion of the company’s pipeline.
“This financing marks a defining moment as we advance EG110A toward later-stage development and broaden our HERMES pipeline,” Chambon said. “Early data support our belief that localized DNA medicines can deliver durable efficacy with a strong safety profile in chronic neurological diseases.”
The financing comes as interest in genetic medicines expands beyond rare inherited diseases into broader chronic conditions. Companies developing viral vector and nucleic acid-based therapies are increasingly seeking to demonstrate that targeted delivery technologies can produce sustained benefits in diseases that require long-term management.
Cyllene said it will use the new capital to continue developing its HERMES platform and identify further opportunities in neurological disease areas where localised, durable treatment approaches may offer an alternative to repeated systemic therapies.