Investment to progress RheumaGen’s celiac disease program through early development as a potential transformational gene therapy

PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Beyond Celiac Investments (BCI), the venture philanthropy program of Beyond Celiac, has made a Series A-1 preferred stock investment in RheumaGen, a cell and gene therapy company focused on editing the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) to develop one-time, curative cell and gene therapies for common autoimmune diseases. The investment will be used to advance their celiac disease program through early development to demonstrate preclinical proof of concept in celiac disease.

“We are incredibly excited about the work RheumaGen is doing in rheumatoid arthritis and the potential to translate that progress and its innovative HLA gene-editing platform to celiac disease,” said Jordan Dubow, M.D., leader of the BCI Investment Committee and Chief Medical Officer at Beyond Celiac. “BCI has a deep due diligence process, and RheumaGen emerged as an outstanding example of the type of company we are looking to support.”

The RheumaGen opportunity was identified through BCI’s inaugural Catalyst Program, which screens for investments in early-stage candidates with the potential for transformational efficacy in celiac disease. Potential candidates from other companies have also emerged from this process which may result in future investments.

“We are grateful to Beyond Celiac Investments for their generous support and conviction in RheumaGen’s novel drug-development approach and experienced team,” said Richard Freed, CEO & Co-Founder of RheumaGen. “Our HLA gene-editing platform has the potential to improve the lives of millions of patients by blocking autoimmune diseases at their source without broad immunosuppression. We are excited about generating proof of concept for patients with celiac disease, who have remained without a curative treatment for far too long.”

BCI has surpassed its first-year fundraising goal and is moving forward with its first investments in companies developing potential treatments for celiac disease. Through its Catalyst Program, BCI will support efforts that show strong potential to advance into clinical trials and ultimately help deliver the first treatments and a cure for celiac disease.

About Beyond Celiac Investments:
BCI operates as the venture philanthropy arm of Beyond Celiac, the nonprofit organization leading the effort to accelerate treatments and a cure for celiac disease. For additional information or to learn more about BCI, visit https://www.beyondceliac.org/beyond-celiac-investments/.

About RheumaGen, Inc.:
RheumaGen is a private biotechnology company engineering a new class of therapeutics to cure common autoimmune diseases. RheumaGen focuses on editing the human leukocyte antigen (HLA), or “immune gene,” to develop one-time, curative cell and gene therapies. RheumaGen is headquartered in Aurora, Colorado, and partners with the ClinImmune Center for Clinical Immunology at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus for clinical development and manufacturing. For more information, please visit rheumagen.com or follow the Company on LinkedIn.