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Stephen Knight, M.D.

President & Senior Managing Partner

About

Stephen Knight joined F-Prime Capital in 2003 where he serves as President and Senior Managing Partner. He has worked in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries for over 30 years and invests broadly across healthcare.  Steve serves on the Board of Directors of Atalanta Therapeutics, Leyden Labs, Paradigm, Quantum Circuits, Inc. (QCI), Skyline Therapeutics, and Xaira Therapeutics.  Steve previously served on the boards of several private and public health care companies including Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BEAM),  Blueprint Medicines (NASDAQ: BPMC), Denali Therapeutics (NASDAQ: DNLI), FoldRx Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Pfizer), Innovent Biologics (1801.HK), Iora Health (acquired by One Medical), Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: IRWD), NextWave Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Pfizer), Prime Medicine (NASDAQ: PRME), Proteostasis Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PTI), Respivert, Ltd (acquired by J&J), Sana Biotechnology (NASDAQ: SANA), and Semma Therapeutics (acquired by Vertex).

Prior to joining F-Prime Capital, Steve held various senior management roles in private and public biotechnology and consulting companies. He also was a researcher at AT&T Bell Laboratories, the National Institutes of Health, and Yale University. He holds an M.D. from the Yale University School of Medicine, an M.B.A. from the Yale School of Organization and Management and received a B.S. in biology from Columbia University, graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa.

  • Aera Therapeutics is a biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary protein nanoparticle (PNP) delivery platform to unlock the full potential of genetic medicines. Aera’s platform, based on endogenous human proteins, is being developed to address the limitations of today’s delivery technologies and to expand the reach of genetic medicines to different tissues and applications, in order to benefit more patients across more disease areas. Aera’s licensed technology also includes a therapeutic enzyme platform based on the discovery of novel, compact and programmable gene editing enzymes. Aera is headquartered in Boston and has raised $193 million to date from leading life sciences investors. To learn more, please visit www.aeratx.com.

  • Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: APLS) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapeutic compounds to treat disease through the inhibition of the complement system, at the level of C3, the central protein in the complement cascade. Learn more at www.apellis.com.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Crestwood, KY

    • Year Invested

      2017

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Atalanta Therapeutics is a biotechnology company pioneering new treatment options for neurodegenerative diseases by utilizing its proprietary RNA interference platform.  Learn more at www.atalantatx.com.

  • Beam Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BEAM) is pioneering the use of CRISPR base editing to develop precision genetic medicines that treat disease, one letter at a time. Learn more at www.beamtx.com.

  • Bikam Pharmaceuticals is a drug discovery company focused on developing novel therapies for diseases of the eye with exceptionally high unmet medical need. Bikam Pharmaceuticals was acquired by Shire.

     

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Acquired

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2007

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • BioPalette is a life science start up formed out of Kobe University developing base editing technology for a range of applications. Learn more at www.biopalette.co.jp.

  • Blueprint Medicines (NASDAQ: BPMC) is a precision therapy company striving to improve human health. Learn more at www.blueprintmedicines.com.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2012

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • CardioKine is a pharmaceutical company focused on the development of lixivaptan, an oral compound under development for the potential treatment of hyponatremia in patients with congestive heart failure. CardioKine was acquired by Cornerstone Therapeutics.

  • Compass Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CMPX) is comprehensively drugging the tumor-immune synapse with human antibodies against over 50 cell surface and soluble targets. Learn more at www.compasstherapeutics.com.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2015

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Curie.Bio is a founder-focused seed-stage venture firm combined with an industry-grade therapeutics accelerator focused on one thing: helping entrepreneurial founders launch viable therapeutics companies. Curie.Bio does this by giving founders access to a team of the world’s best drug hunters and drug makers, seed capital, and best-of-breed services – everything a founder needs to get from concept to a compelling quality dataset that enables an awesome Series A financing. In a nutshell, we want founders in control of their own company and focused on their area of expertise and creativity, while we help make the rest happen smoothly. Learn more at Curie.Bio.

  • Denali Therapeutics (NASDAQ:DNLI) is dedicated to defeating neurodegenerative diseases through rigorous therapeutic discovery and development. Learn more at www.denalitherapeutics.com.

  • Ensoma is expanding the reach of the curative power of genomic medicine by pioneering a next-generation in vivo approach using its Engenious™ vectors. Ensoma’s vectors are designed to deliver a diverse range of gene modification technologies without the need for stem cell collection or prior myeloablative conditioning (e.g. chemotherapy). Learn more at www.ensoma.com.

  • FoldRx Pharmaceuticals focuses on creating disease modifying drug therapies for diseases of protein misfolding. FoldRx developed, tafamidis, the first-in-class therapy approved or TTR amyloidosis. FoldRx was acquired by Pfizer.

  • Hua Medicine (2552.KHK) is a leading clinical-stage, innovative drug development company in China, focused on novel therapies for the treatment of diabetes and CNS disorders. Learn more at www.huamedicine.com.

  • Innovent Biologics (1801.HK) has built a robust pipeline of innovative and commercially promising monoclonal antibodies and other biologics in the fields of oncology, ophthalmology, autoimmune, and cardiovascular diseases. Learn more at www.innoventbio.com.

  • Iora Health is building a different kind of health system to deliver high impact, relationship based care. Iora Health was acquired by One Medical in September 2021.

  • Ironwood Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:IRWD) developed  linaclotide, a first-in-class therapy that received FDA approval for both irritable bowel syndrome and chronic constipation. Learn more at www.ironwoodpharma.com.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2002

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Leyden Labs platform targets commonalities of viral families to protect humanity from known and future viruses. Learn more at www.leydenlabs.com.

  • LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals was a vaccine discovery and development company with a first-in-class vaccine for norovirus, a pathogen that is a leading cause of viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu). LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals was acquired by Takeda.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Acquired

    • Location

      Bozeman, MT

    • Year Invested

      2008

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • NextWave Pharmaceuticals is a specialty pharmaceutical company seeking to create and promote differentiated products in the pediatric market. NextWave Pharmaceuticals was acquired by Pfizer.

  • Orchard Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ORTX) is a fully integrated commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to transforming the lives of patients with serious and life-threatening rare diseases through innovative gene therapies. Learn more at www.orchard-tx.com.

  • Paradigm is rebuilding the clinical research ecosystem by creating a platform that enables equitable access to trials for all patients, while enhancing trial efficiency and reducing the barriers to participation for healthcare providers. Paradigm aims to break down barriers across the trial ecosystem through one seamless infrastructure implemented at healthcare provider organizations, bringing potentially life-saving therapies to patients faster. Learn more: www.paradigm.inc.

  • Prime Medicine (NASDAQ: PRME) is a biotechnology company founded to deliver on the promise of Prime Editing, a versatile gene editing technology that can truly “search and replace” to restore normal genetic function and address the fundamental causes of disease. Prime Medicine envisions a world where Prime Editing can cure, halt, and ultimately prevent genetic diseases, providing lifelong benefit to patients and shaping the future of gene editing. Learn more at www.primemedicine.com.

     

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2019

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Proteostasis Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PTI)  is a drug discovery company developing small molecule therapeutics to treat cystic fibrosis and other diseases caused by dysfunctional protein processing.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Cambridge, MA

    • Year Invested

      2008

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Pulmocide is a biopharmaceutical company with a mission to treat common acute and chronic respiratory tract infections associated with serious complications and devastating effects on patients’ quality of life. Learn more at www.pulmocide.com.

  • Quantum Circuits, Inc. (QCI) was founded in 2015 with the goal of developing, manufacturing and selling the first practical and useful quantum computers based on superconducting devices. QCI was founded by pioneers in quantum devices and information processing from the Department of Applied Physics at Yale University. Their group has produced many scientific firsts, including the development of a “quantum bus” for entangling qubits with wires and the first implementation of a quantum algorithms and error-correction with a solid-state device. Learn more: www.quantumcircuits.com

  • RespiVert was a drug discovery and development company focused on inhaled therapies for severe respiratory disease. RespiVert was acquired by Centocor Ortho Biotech – a division of Johnson & Johnson.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Acquired

    • Location

      London, UK

    • Year Invested

      2007

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Sana Biotechnology, Inc. (NASDAQ:SANA) is focused on creating and delivering engineered cells as medicine for patients. We are a team of scientists, clinicians and biotechnology veterans focused on creating an enduring company that makes meaningful medicines and changes how we approach treating disease. Learn more about Sana at www.sana.com.

  • Semma Therapeutics is a regenerative medicine company founded to develop transformative stem cell-derived therapies to provide a functional cure for patients with diabetes. This company was acquired by Vertex in 2019.

  • Skyline Therapeutics (formerly Geneception) is a fully-integrated gene and cell therapy based in Hangzhou and Shanghai, China.  Founded by F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures China and Lilly Asia Ventures in 2018, Skyline’s mission is to become a preeminent gene and cell therapy company, working to deliver world-class therapeutics for patients in China and globally.

    Learn more at skytx.com.

  • TCT Medical is a diagnostic company based in China which provides high quality diagnostic tests, primarily in the women’s health arena. TCT Medical was acquired by Hologic.

    • Category

      • MedTech

    • Status

      • Acquired

    • Location

      Beijing, China

    • Year Invested

      2009

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Ultragenyx (NASDAQ: RARE) a biopharmaceutical company committed to bringing to patients novel products for the treatment of serious rare and ultra-rare genetic diseases. Learn more at www.ultragenyx.com.

    • Category

      • Therapeutics

    • Status

      • Public

    • Location

      Novato, CA

    • Year Invested

      2011

    • Team

      Stephen Knight, M.D.

  • Verve Therapeutics (NASDAQ: VERV) is a biotechnology company created with a singular focus: to protect the world from heart disease. Verve is developing therapies to safely edit the genome of adults and confer lifelong protection from coronary artery disease, the most common form of heart disease and the leading cause of death worldwide. Learn more at www.vervetx.com.

  • Xaira Therapeutics is an integrated biotechnology company driving advances in artificial intelligence to learn the language of life and transform how we treat disease. The company seeks to rethink the drug discovery and development process from end-to-end by bringing together leading talent across three core areas: machine learning research to better understand biology, expansive data generation to power new models, and robust therapeutic product development to treat disease. Learn more at www.xaira.com.