An Icelandic scaleup has sparked hopes of a breakthrough in dementia treatment after raising €26.5mn for groundbreaking research.

Arctic Therapeutics (ATx) attracted the investment after pioneering a new approach to drug development. Founded in 2015, the company first analyses genomic data with bioinformatics — a blend of computer science and biology.

After identifying disease-associated genes and proteins, ATx targets the root causes of a given condition.

According to the scaleup, the process cuts the risks, costs, and time involved in developing treatments.

The new financing could push the benefits closer towards patients. ATx said the Series A funds will advance two frontrunner drugs: AT-001 and AT-004.

AT-001 has proven particularly promising. The treatment focuses on dementia caused by harmful accumulations of protein. Its primary target is amyloid-induced angiopathy, a condition characterised by proteins amassing in the walls of the brain’s arteries.

Taken orally, AT-001 disrupts and dissolves these harmful protein clusters. Consequently, the treatment could reduce the risks of dementia.

ATx is confident of stalling the condition’s progression. The company also believes the drug could delay dementia’s onset — and even reverse its course.

Ívar Hákonarson, the CEO and co-founder of ATx, said the treatment has “transformative potential.”

“AT-001 offers hope for earlier intervention and even preventive use in individuals at high risk of developing dementia based on our biomarker signals,” he told TNW.

Changing the trajectory of dementia

Tests on AT-001 are progressing rapidly. Last year, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved a new clinical trial that will probe the drug’s effects on HCCAA — a rare form of familial dementia.

ATx also plans to launch a clinical trial for AT-004. The study aims to show the treatment is effective and safe for acne, before expanding into other inflammatory skin diseases.

ATx expects the new funds to accelerate the research.

A syndicate of international investors participated in the round. Among them is the European Commission’s EIC Fund, which supports companies developing disruptive tech.

Svetoslava Georgieva, the chair of the EIC Fund Board, described the ATx financing as both an opportunity and a responsibility.

“In Europe alone, dementia affects over 10 million people — placing immense strain on families, healthcare systems, and economies,” she said in a statement.

“By providing an equity investment in Arctic Therapeutics, the EIC Fund is supporting groundbreaking preventive treatments that have the potential to change the trajectory of this crisis, improve quality of life, and alleviate the burden on healthcare infrastructure worldwide.”