Key Investor Signals
$1.2M in non-equity and competition funding
NorthMiRs won $250,000 at the 2024 ECHO PITCH and reports $400,000 each from the Nanomedicine Innovation Network and Canadian Institutes of Health Research, plus $150,000 from Mitacs.
Licensed rights to patent application behind NM-001
NorthMiRs licenses rights to a patent application covering the microRNA particle underpinning NM-001, filed by the founding team and published in February 2025.
Science led by two Tier 1 Canada Research Chairs
Co-founders Claudia dos Santos and Gilbert Walker hold Tier 1 Canada Research Chairs in critical care and biointerfaces; NM-001 emerged from their University of Toronto labs.
Other Positive Signals
- Posted a preprint with preclinical data on lipid nanoparticle delivery of the microRNA.
- Selected among the first two Ontario ventures for the MaRS–adMare Therapeutics Accelerator.
Team
Samantha McWhirter
CEO and Co-founder
- Completed a University of Toronto PhD in analytical chemistry focused on lipid nanoparticle drug-delivery systems.
- Co-chaired the Chemical Biophysics Symposium and held roles in the Chemical Institute of Canada's Toronto section.
Claudia dos Santos
CSO and Co-founder
- Holds the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair for Translational Molecular Critical Care and previously held the Pitts Research Chair.
- University of Toronto Professor of Medicine and critical-care physician at Unity Health Toronto, where NM-001's clinical need was identified.
- Created Unity Health's Critical Care Medicine Biobank and leads its precision-medicine programme for critical care.
Gilbert Walker
CFO and Co-founder
- University of Toronto chemistry professor and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in BioInterfaces, a chair he has held since 2005.
- Former Scientific Director and Chief Executive of the Nanomedicine Innovation Network, the national programme behind NorthMiRs.
Product
NorthMiRs is developing NM-001, a synthetic miR-187-3p replacement for sepsis-induced organ injury. It is delivered in a lipid nanoparticle, the same carrier class used in mRNA vaccines, to restore a microRNA depleted in septic hearts and modulate the immune response. The programme is preclinical.
Single intravenous dose
NM-001 is designed as a single intravenous dose within six hours of suspected sepsis, fitting existing intensive-care workflows where patients already receive intravenous drugs.
Replaces a depleted microRNA signal
Rather than blocking a single inflammatory molecule, NM-001 replaces miR-187-3p, a regulatory microRNA depleted in septic hearts. NorthMiRs says the replacement has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and organ-protective effects.
Synthetic alternative to cell therapy
The therapeutic effect was identified through 15 years of stem-cell research, then rebuilt as a synthetic microRNA product. NorthMiRs says this allows a defined, scalable formulation instead of variable cell-based manufacturing.
Market Overview
Sepsis causes an estimated 48.9M cases and 11M deaths each year worldwide. Treatment focuses on antibiotics, source control and organ support. No approved therapy directly corrects the dysregulated immune response that drives organ injury and failure.
Sepsis-induced cardiac dysfunction affects 30–60% of patients and is associated with higher hospital mortality. Commercial treatment remains dominated by antibiotics, while US hospital costs reached about $60B in 2022, leaving a large clinical and economic gap for therapies that prevent organ damage.
WHO estimates 48.9M sepsis cases worldwide each year across infections and care settings.
Hospital mortality reached 40% with severe sepsis-induced cardiac dysfunction versus 25.7% without it.
One antibiotic class represented 60.7% of global sepsis therapeutics revenue in 2024.
US hospital spending on septicemia, the HCUP category covering sepsis codes, reached about $60B in 2022.
Comparable Outcomes
Regulus Therapeutics
Regulus developed microRNA-targeting medicines. Its lead candidate targeted a single microRNA in polycystic kidney disease and had completed a Phase 1b dose study when the deal was signed. Novartis completed its acquisition of Regulus Therapeutics in June 2025 for $800M in cash upfront.
Dicerna Pharmaceuticals
Dicerna developed RNA-interference medicines that silence selected genes by degrading messenger RNA. Its platform delivered RNA drugs to liver and other tissues, and Novo Nordisk partnered with the company before acquiring it. Novo Nordisk completed its $3.3B acquisition of Dicerna Pharmaceuticals in December 2021.
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Sources
This profile was built from public company materials, ecosystem sources, market references, and professional profiles.