What Resalis Therapeutics does

Resalis Therapeutics S.r.l. is a privately held, clinical-stage Italian biopharmaceutical company founded in 2021 and headquartered in Turin. The company develops non-coding RNA-based therapeutics targeting metabolic disorders, with a primary focus on obesity and metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) including its progressive form MASH. The company's lead candidate, RES-010, is a locked nucleic acid (LNA) antisense oligonucleotide designed to inhibit microRNA-22 (miR-22), a regulator of lipid metabolism that the founders identified as dysregulated in obesity and fatty liver disease. By suppressing miR-22, RES-010 promotes metabolic rewiring toward higher energy expenditure, converts white adipose tissue into brown adipose tissue via UCP1 upregulation, and reduces hepatic steatosis and inflammation. A second-generation candidate, RES-020 (a GalNAc-conjugated form of RES-010), is in discovery stage.

The company's scientific foundation originates from Aalborg University's Center for RNA Medicine in Denmark and Harvard Medical School, where co-founders Riccardo Panella (CSO) and Sakari Kauppinen (CTO) — who previously supervised discovery of miravirsen, the world's first microRNA-targeted drug — established the underlying biology. The management team has been heavily augmented with senior pharma talent, including CEO Alessandro Toniolo (ex-Merck, Pfizer, Shire, Novartis), Chief Medical and Development Officer Almut Nitsche (17+ years at Sanofi in diabetes R&D), Chief Technical Development Officer Thomas Eichinger (33 years at Sanofi, former Global Head of CMC Dossiers), and Medical Director Sandor Batkai (former Cardior Pharmaceuticals co-founder, acquired by Novo Nordisk).

Resalis is pre-revenue and does not commercialize products. The business model anticipates future revenue through commercialization of RES-010 and pipeline products upon regulatory approval, likely via pharmaceutical partnership or licensing — as evidenced by Sanofi's strategic equity investment in October 2024. RES-010 entered Phase 1 clinical trials in December 2024, evaluating safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and efficacy in healthy, overweight, and moderately obese volunteers. The company targets two large, underserved patient populations: approximately 650 million people globally living with obesity (WHO data) and over 30% of the global population affected by MAFLD. To date, Resalis has raised approximately €26 million across seed and Series A rounds (Claris Ventures, Sunstone Life Science Ventures, Italian Angels for Growth, Club degli Investitori) plus the Sanofi strategic investment.

Name

Resalis Therapeutics

Legal name

Resalis Therapeutics S.r.l.

Website

https://resalistherapeutics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Resalis Therapeutics is a clinical-stage Italian biotech developing RES-010, a first-in-class LNA antisense oligonucleotide that inhibits microRNA-22 to treat obesity and MAFLD/MASH. The company targets large metabolic disease populations with a disease-modifying subcutaneous therapy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

RNA-based Biopharmaceuticals

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)

akta.pro primary industry

Antisense Oligonucleotides (ASO) Therapeutics (splice modulation/knockdown) (HLAAADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

RNA Chemistry & Oligonucleotide Engineering (backbones, modifications, stereochemistry) (HLAAADAE), RNA Therapeutics Platforms & Design (sequence design, target ID/validation, AI/bioinformatics) (HLAAADAG), RNA Therapeutics Clinical Development (trial design, endpoints, patient stratification) (HLAAADAH), RNA Therapeutics Safety & Immunogenicity (innate immune activation, tox, off-target) (HLAAADAI)

Keywords

• Antisense oligonucleotide therapeutics
• RNA-based drug discovery
• Metabolic disease treatment
• Obesity therapeutics
• MicroRNA inhibitors

Headquarters

HQ city

Torino

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Pharmaceutical Product Revenue: Pre-revenue clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. Expected to generate revenue through commercialization of RES-010 and future pipeline products upon regulatory approval. Pipeline includes first-generation RES-010 and second-generation RES-020 (GalNAc conjugated RES-010) targeting obesity and MAFLD/MASH.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Resalis Therapeutics develops RNA-based drug candidates, primarily RES-010, an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) using locked nucleic acid (LNA) technology to inhibit microRNA-22 (miR-22) for the treatment of metabolic disorders including obesity and metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD/MASH). The pipeline also includes RES-020, a GalNAc-conjugated second-generation formulation of RES-010. RES-010 is administered subcutaneously and is currently in Phase 1 clinical trials, with potential applications as standalone therapy or in combination with GLP-1 receptor agonists.

Product overview

Resalis Therapeutics is developing a pipeline of non-coding RNA-based drug candidates for metabolic diseases. The company's lead product is RES-010, an antisense oligonucleotide targeting miR-22 using LNA technology, currently in Phase 1 clinical trials for obesity and MAFLD/MASH. The second-generation candidate RES-020 is a GaINAc conjugated formulation of RES-010 in discovery stage. The company employs a dual indications strategy targeting both obesity and fatty liver disease with disease-modifying therapeutic potential.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• RES-010 RES-010 is an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) drug candidate designed to specifically target and inhibit microRNA-22 (miR-22) using locked nucleic acid (LNA) technology. It is being developed for the treatment of obesity and metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD/MASH), administered via subcutaneous injection. The drug candidate restores regulation of lipid biosynthesis, promotes metabolic rewiring toward higher energy expenditure, transforms white adipose tissue into brown adipose tissue, and reduces hepatic steatosis and inflammation. Currently in Phase 1 clinical trials with potential for use as stand-alone therapy or in combination with GLP-1 receptor agonists.
• RES-020 RES-020 is a second-generation GalNAc-conjugated formulation of RES-010, designed to improve hepatocyte-targeted delivery and efficacy for metabolic disease treatment, currently in discovery stage.

Quantifiable outcome

• Preclinical studies demonstrated protection from obesity and fatty liver disease in mouse models
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Aalborg UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific roots originating from Aalborg University in Denmark. Co-founders Riccardo Panella and Sakari Kauppinen serve at the university. Panella serves as Associate Professor at Center for RNA Medicine, Department of Clinical Medicine. Kauppinen serves as Professor and Director of Center for RNA Medicine.
• Harvard Medical SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific roots originating from Harvard Medical School in the U.S. Co-founder Riccardo Panella conducted research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, part of Harvard Medical School.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Regulus Therapeutics: Clinical-stage microRNA-targeted therapeutics company. Most direct peer to Resalis given shared focus on microRNA inhibition as a therapeutic modality, including metabolic and renal programs.
• Cardior Pharmaceuticals: Non-coding RNA-based therapeutics company in cardiovascular disease, acquired by Novo Nordisk. Resalis' Medical Director Sandor Batkai was co-founder there, and the company shares the same ncRNA therapeutic modality heritage.
• Wave Life Sciences: Clinical-stage RNA therapeutics company using stereopure oligonucleotide chemistry across multiple disease areas. Direct comparable in modality (modified oligonucleotides) and stage.
• ProQR Therapeutics: RNA therapeutics company developing Axiomer RNA editing platform for rare diseases. Comparable in RNA-based therapeutic modality and clinical-stage risk profile.
• Madrigal Pharmaceuticals: Commercial-stage MASH-focused company (resmetirom/Rezdiffra, first FDA-approved MASH therapy). Direct competitor in the MASH indication Resalis is pursuing, providing a benchmark for MASH development and commercialization.
• Sagimet Biosciences: Clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapies for MASH. Direct peer in the MASH indication with similar stage profile and liver-targeted mechanism.
• 89bio: Clinical-stage MASH-focused company developing FGF21 analog pegozafermin. Comparable in stage and indication, representing a directly competitive clinical asset for the MASH opportunity.

Emerging players

• NEUmiRNA Therapeutics: MicroRNA therapeutics co-founded by Resalis' CTO Sakari Kauppinen. Closely related emerging player in the same non-coding RNA therapeutic space with overlapping scientific lineage.

Broad incumbents

• Ionis Pharmaceuticals: Leading antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) platform company with multiple approved products. Broad incumbent in the ASO modality Resalis uses; relevant for chemistry/IP benchmarking and partnership signals.
• Alnylam Pharmaceuticals: Industry-leading RNAi therapeutics company (siRNA platform). Adjacent RNA-based therapeutic modality to ASOs, serving as a broad incumbent for RNA drug development risk/return benchmarks.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/resalistherapeutics

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors6 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Resalis Therapeutics