Israeli Company Secures $22 Million for Fat-Burning Injection

Israeli pharmaceutical company Raziel Therapeutics recently announced the raising of funds through the issuance of Series C preferred securities totaling $22 million, led by Israeli venture firm Pontifax and involving major investors.

The company, founded in 2012 based on the technology center of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, is developing a thermogenic injection that burns fat cells – RZL-012. The substance is intended for a single subcutaneous injection, where it activates the process of thermogenesis. This causes immediate death of fat cells at the injection site and delays their regeneration, leading to a significant reduction in fat tissue over 9–12 months, note the creators of the innovative drug.

Clinical trials of the fat-burning injection conducted in the USA showed that it provides a 30–50% reduction in subcutaneous fat at the injection site.

The raised funds will be used to finance the development of a modified version of RZL-012, intended to reduce the fat layer under the chin and to treat Dercum's disease, a rare chronic condition that causes the formation of subcutaneous deposits of fat tissue in various parts of the body, accompanied by pain syndrome.

Raziel Therapeutics stated that at the end of last year it received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to develop RZL-012 as a drug for treating patients with a rare disease. Clinical trials to test its efficacy in the therapy of Dercum's disease, according to company representatives, are expected to begin this year.

“As we move towards the next phase of developing RZL-012 for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes, we feel strong support from leading healthcare investors who share our vision of creating a best-in-class product with obvious clinical advantages,” says the company's CEO Alon Blumenfeld. “We hope that its emergence will help many people with conditions related to pathological fat accumulation.”