Rubedo Life Sciences
Commercial
About
Rubedo Life Sciences is a privately held, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Sunnyvale, California, with European headquarters and clinical operations in Milan. It uses its ALEMBIC drug-discovery platform to design small molecules that selectively target senescent and other pathological cells implicated in age-related disease. Its lead candidate, RLS-1496, is a topical GPX4 modulator; the company reported preliminary Phase 1 results in plaque psoriasis, atopic dermatitis and skin aging in March 2026 and is testing it in a Phase 1/2 trial in actinic keratosis. Earlier-stage programmes address respiratory (including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis), metabolic and neurological indications, and the company has a multi-year skin-care partnership with Beiersdorf. Its scientists have co-authored studies on neuronal senescence in dorsal root ganglia and senescent fibroblast heterogeneity in pulmonary fibrosis.
Rating breakdown
Aggregate 33/100 · rank #13 in the commercial table full ratings →
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Publications16
Discovery56
Trials from ClinicalTrials.gov (this org as lead sponsor), matched to aging by their condition or intervention.
- Phase 1b/2a study of RLS-1496 topical cream for actinic keratosis (NCT07340697); FDA cleared the AK IND in September 2025 and preliminary data (May 2026) reported a 46% reduction in actinic keratosis lesions at 4 weeks versus 11% in untreated lesions ↗
- RBO-2XX respiratory program: preclinical senescence-targeting candidate for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, extending the CIRM-funded IPF work ↗
- RLS-1496, topical GPX4 modulator targeting pathologic senescent cells; first patient dosed in Phase 1 (2025) with preliminary results in plaque psoriasis, atopic dermatitis and skin aging (2026) ↗
Development0
No clinical-stage geroprotective trials recorded.
Fundraising61
- 2024-04 — Rubedo Life Sciences publicly disclosed Series A financing (2024) · USD 40M · Khosla Ventures (co-lead), Ahren Innovation Capital (co-lead), Hevolution, R42 source ↗
- 2020-12 — Rubedo Life Sciences publicly disclosed $12M seed financing (December 2020) · USD 12M · Khosla Ventures (lead), The Longevity Fund, Refactor Capital, Shanda Group source ↗
- 2023-02 — California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) publicly disclosed a Quest discovery-stage grant to Rubedo Life Sciences for an idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis programme (February 2023) · USD 1M · California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) source ↗
Education10
- Alex Colville ARDD speaker 2024 source ↗
- Marco Quarta ARDD speaker 2026 source ↗
Key outputs
- clinical trial Phase 1b/2a study of RLS-1496 topical cream for actinic keratosis (NCT07340697); FDA cleared the AK IND in September 2025 and preliminary data (May 2026) reported a 46% reduction in actinic keratosis lesions at 4 weeks versus 11% in untreated lesions ↗ 2026
- drug candidate RBO-2XX respiratory program: preclinical senescence-targeting candidate for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, extending the CIRM-funded IPF work ↗
- drug candidate RLS-1496, topical GPX4 modulator targeting pathologic senescent cells; first patient dosed in Phase 1 (2025) with preliminary results in plaque psoriasis, atopic dermatitis and skin aging (2026) ↗ 2025
- publication Aging and injury drive neuronal senescence in the dorsal root ganglia (Nature Neuroscience) ↗ 2025
- publication Uncovering senescent fibroblast heterogeneity connects DNA damage response to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (npj Aging) ↗ 2026
Registered clinical trials
1 trials list this organisation as lead sponsor ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
- Evaluate RLS-1496 Topical Cream for Actinic Keratosis ↗ PHASE1, PHASE2 · ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING · 2026-02-03
Financial
Financing rounds
| Date | Amount | Round | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-04 | USD 40M | Rubedo Life Sciences publicly disclosed Series A financing (2024) | Khosla Ventures (co-lead), Ahren Innovation Capital (co-lead), Hevolution, R42, Modi Ventures, LongeVC, others |
| 2020-12 | USD 12M | Rubedo Life Sciences publicly disclosed $12M seed financing (December 2020) | Khosla Ventures (lead), The Longevity Fund, Refactor Capital, Shanda Group |
| 2023-02 | USD 1M | California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) publicly disclosed a Quest discovery-stage grant to Rubedo Life Sciences for an idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis programme (February 2023) | California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) |
Key people
Marco QuartaCo-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer (founding CEO)Frederick BeddingfieldChief Executive Officer and Board DirectorMark GallopCo-Founder and Chairman of the BoardMary SpellmanChief Medical OfficerJulian KleinCo-Founder, ResearchAlex LaslavicChief Technology Officer (co-author on Rubedo's Nature Neuroscience senescent-neuron study)Ali SiamChief Business OfficerMatt GormanChief Financial OfficerOfir MorenoSenior Vice President, Drug Discovery
Research fields
Links
Sources
- https://www.rubedolife.com/
- https://www.rubedolife.com/about/
- https://www.rubedolife.com/pipeline/
- https://www.rubedolife.com/investors-news/
- https://www.rubedolife.com/media-press-release/news-briefing-new-senescent-cell-play-launches-with-12m/
- https://www.biospace.com/rubedo-life-sciences-closes-40m-series-a-financing-led-by-khosla-ventures-and-ahren-innovation-capital
- https://via.tt.se/pressmeddelande/3665983/rubedo-life-sciences-announces-european-expansion-ahead-of-first-clinical-trial?lang=en
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250522955270/en/Rubedo-Life-Sciences-Announces-First-Patient-Dosed-with-Lead-Drug-Candidate-RLS-1496-the-First-GPX4-Modulator-Targeting-Pathologic-Senescent-Cells-To-Enter-Phase-1-Clinical-Trial
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260326810310/en/Rubedo-Life-Sciences-Announces-Positive-Preliminary-Phase-1-Clinical-Trial-Results-for-Lead-Drug-Candidate-RLS-1496-in-Patients-with-Plaque-Psoriasis-Atopic-Dermatitis-and-Skin-Aging
- https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07340697
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-025-01954-x
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41514-026-00388-4
- https://longevity.technology/news/rubedo-the-senolytic-alchemist-of-aging-biology/
- https://www.finsmes.com/2020/12/rubedo-life-sciences-closes-12m-seed-financing-round.html
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230206005081/en/
- https://www.cirm.ca.gov/our-progress/institutions/rubedo-life-sciences-inc
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250917407244/en/
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260528143952/en/