OBI NERVE 2025 Cohort Company Neuropeutics Secures $882,188 to Advance Groundbreaking ALS Therapy
23 mars 2026
Genome Canada and Ontario Genomics funding will accelerate preclinical development of JRMS, a first-in-class molecule targeting the protein clumping found in 97% of ALS cases.
Neuropeutics Inc., part of OBI's NERVE 2025 cohort, has been awarded $882,188 through the Regional Genomic Applications Partnership Program (GAPP), funded by Genome Canada and Ontario Genomics. The investment will accelerate preclinical development of JRMS, a first-in-class small molecule targeting the protein clumping that drives ALS, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's disease.
Neurodegenerative diseases affect more than 50 million people worldwide. For ALS patients specifically, the prognosis remains devastating: most survive only two to five years after diagnosis, and currently approved drugs extend life by an average of just six months. Existing treatments manage symptoms. None stop or reverse disease progression.
Neuropeutics is developing JRMS to address the root cause rather than the downstream effects. The molecule targets TDP-43, a protein whose toxic clumping is present in 97% of ALS cases and increasingly implicated in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's as well. JRMS works by preventing new clumps from forming and reversing those already present. Early studies in human cells and animal models have demonstrated both effects, providing strong proof of concept for disease modification.
The GAPP-funded project is led by Marc Shenouda at Neuropeutics and Dr. Janice Robertson at the University of Toronto's Temerty Faculty of Medicine, one of the world's leading researchers in TDP-43 biology. Together with partners Toronto Innovation Acceleration Partners (TIAP), AbbVie, and LifeArc, the team is advancing JRMS through medicinal chemistry optimization and preclinical validation to identify a lead development candidate for future clinical trials. LifeArc contributes medicinal chemistry and drug development expertise; AbbVie provides strategic guidance on CMC development and industry insights.
Neuropeutics' path to this milestone began with OBI's NERVE Program — Neurotech Entrepreneurship to Validate Emerging Innovations — Canada's single largest award for early-stage neurotechnology entrepreneurs. Through NERVE, Marc received non-dilutive funding, expert mentorship, and access to OBI's network of researchers, clinicians, and industry partners at a critical stage in the company's development. The GAPP award is a direct extension of that early momentum.
The two-year project runs from March 31, 2026 to March 30, 2028. Funding will support medicinal chemistry optimization, preclinical validation studies, and selection of a lead development candidate for future clinical testing. If successful, JRMS could become the first therapy to address the root cause of TDP-43-driven neurodegeneration — a category of disease that has resisted effective treatment for decades.
About Neuropeutics Inc.
Neuropeutics Inc. is a Toronto-based biopharmaceutical company developing targeted therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. The company's lead program, JRMS, is a first-in-class small molecule targeting TDP-43 pathology, the key disease driver present in the vast majority of ALS cases and implicated in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
About the NERVE Program
The NERVE Program (Neurotech Entrepreneurship to Validate Emerging Innovations) is Canada's single largest award for early-stage neurotechnology entrepreneurs. Up to five entrepreneurs are selected annually for the 12-month program, each receiving $100,000 in non-dilutive funding, 1:1 mentorship from sector experts, workshops and training, and access to OBI's network of researchers, clinicians, and industry partners. OBI takes no equity and no IP.
Applications for NERVE 2026 are now open. Learn more and apply at braininstitute.ca/nerve