Brenig Therapeutics is a neurology-focused biotechnology company building disease-modifying small-molecule therapies for Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Founded in 2021 and backed by $65 million in Series A funding led by NEA, Brenig pairs AI- and machine-learning-driven discovery with structure-based design to engineer brain-penetrant molecules that hit the central nervous system while sparing the rest of the body. Its lead candidate, BT-267, is a selective LRRK2 inhibitor now in human trials, followed by BT-409, a brain-selective NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor targeting neuroinflammation.
Vishwanath Lingappa is the CEO and CTO of Prosetta Biosciences, a San Francisco-based biotechnology company he founded in 2003 after 22 years as a faculty member at UCSF. An MD-PhD with a doctorate from The Rockefeller University under Nobel laureate Gunter Blobel, Lingappa developed a proprietary Cell-Free Protein Synthesis System (CFPSS) drug discovery platform that targets transient multi-protein complexes - a class of drug targets largely ignored by traditional pharma. His company is pursuing small-molecule therapeutics across neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's, ALS, Parkinson's), oncology, and infectious diseases (COVID-19, HIV, influenza), and won an ARPA-H Dash competition for a pan-cancer drug candidate. With over 157 publications and 12,800+ citations, Lingappa bridges rigorous academia with commercial biotech ambition.