Yuma Therapeutics

Yuma Therapeutics was a pre-clinical stage biotechnology company focused on developing small molecule modulators of the Heat Shock Protein 70 (Hsp70) chaperone system. Founded in 2014 with backing from Atlas Venture, the company aimed to treat neurodegenerative diseases characterized by protein misfolding, such as Alzheimer's disease and ALS. Its technology was based on research from the University of South Florida and the University of Michigan, specifically targeting the Hsp70/CHIP complex to promote the degradation of toxic protein aggregates like tau. The company's approach centered on allosteric modulation to achieve high specificity for disease-relevant protein conformations. Yuma Therapeutics ceased operations in the late 2010s without advancing its candidates into clinical trials.