Decibel Therapeutics, a Phase 1 biotech developing treatments for hearing and balance disorders, filed on Friday with the SEC to raise up to $75 million in an initial public offering.
Decibel Therapeutics aims to restore and improve hearing and balance through the restoration and regeneration of functional hair cells and non-sensory support cells within the inner ear. Its proprietary platform integrates single-cell genomics and bioinformatics analyses, using precision gene therapy technologies to advance its pipeline of preclinical gene therapy programs that are designed to selectively replace genes for the treatment of congenital, monogenic hearing loss. Decibel's lead gene therapy product candidate, DB-OTO, is being developed to provide hearing to individuals born with profound hearing loss due to mutation of the otoferlin gene. The company is also advancing DB-ATO, a gene therapy program designed to restore balance in patients with bilateral vestibulopathy, and DB-020, which is for the prevention of cisplatin-induced hearing loss and is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1b trial.
The Boston, MA-based company was founded in 2013 and plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol DBTX. Decibel Therapeutics filed confidentially on December 11, 2020. Citi, SVB Leerink, BMO Capital Markets, and Barclays are the joint bookrunners on the deal. No pricing terms were disclosed.
