UNITY Biotechnology, Inc. Announces Q2 2024 Financial Results and Business Updates

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Aug. 06, 2024 – UNITY Biotechnology, Inc. (UNITY) [NASDAQ:UBX], a biotechnology company focused on developing treatments to slow, halt, or reverse diseases of aging, has announced its financial results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2024.

Dr. Anirvan Ghosh, CEO of UNITY, highlighted the company's progress in expanding and extending the ASPIRE study to 50 patients and 36 weeks to evaluate the efficacy and durability of UBX1325 compared to aflibercept. He expressed satisfaction with the clinical operations team's performance and the investigators' enthusiasm, which has allowed them to exceed their enrollment goals.

UBX1325 (foselutoclax) is a novel therapeutic option for diabetic macular edema (DME), designed to work through a senolytic mechanism that acts upstream of VEGF inhibitors. This mechanism has the potential to overcome the limitations of current treatments, such as high treatment burdens and sub-optimal responses. UNITY anticipates releasing 24-week primary endpoint data in the first quarter of 2025 and 36-week data in the second quarter of 2025. The Phase 2b ASPIRE study is a multi-center, randomized, double-masked, active-controlled trial aimed at evaluating the safety and efficacy of UBX1325 in direct comparison to aflibercept.

Financially, UNITY reported that its cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities totaled $34.0 million as of June 30, 2024, compared to $43.2 million as of December 31, 2023. The company believes this is sufficient to fund operations into the third quarter of 2025. The net loss for the three months ending June 30, 2024, was $5.3 million, a significant improvement from the $15.5 million loss in the same period in 2023. Cash used in operations during the first half of 2024 was $9.8 million, down from $22.4 million in the first half of 2023.

Research and development expenses decreased by $3.0 million, from $6.4 million in Q2 2023 to $3.5 million in Q2 2024. This decrease is attributed to a $2.0 million reduction in personnel costs due to a reduction in workforce, a $0.7 million decrease in direct research and development expenses following the completion of the Phase 2 BEHOLD study of UBX1325 in DME patients and the Phase 2 ENVISION study in AMD patients, and a $0.3 million reduction in operating costs related to decreased fixed assets depreciation and reduced office space.

General and administrative expenses also saw a decrease, from $5.4 million in Q2 2023 to $3.5 million in Q2 2024. This reduction was primarily due to a $1.2 million drop in personnel-related expenses, including reduced headcount and lower bonus and severance costs compared to 2023. Additionally, there was a $0.4 million decrease in professional fees and accounting services, and a $0.3 million reduction in operating costs partly due to continued sublease income from the East Grand property.

UNITY is dedicated to developing a new class of therapeutics aimed at slowing, halting, or reversing diseases associated with aging. The current focus is on creating medicines to selectively eliminate or modulate senescent cells, offering transformative benefits in age-related ophthalmologic and neurologic diseases.