ROME Therapeutics and Enara Bio to Host Inaugural Dark Genome Symposium Convening Industry and Academic Leaders to Catalyze Therapeutic Application of Dark Genome Research

BOSTON, Mass. and Oxford, UK – November 3, 2022 – ROME Therapeutics and Enara Bio, two leading biotechnology companies focused on developing novel medicines driven by insights to the dark genome, today announced that they will host the inaugural Dark Genome Symposium on Monday, November 7, 2022 at ROME’s headquarters in Boston. This one-day event brings together leaders from academia, biotech and pharma working on the dark genome to share knowledge, opportunities, applications and challenges to solve as a community.

The dark genome, that is the 98% of the genome that is not traditionally associated with protein-encoding genes, is increasingly found to be associated with human diseases, from autoimmune and neurodegeneration to cancer and aging. A key goal of the meeting is to catalyze collaborations around dark genome research and its medical application, in order to accelerate discovery and development of new therapies.

“The therapeutic potential of the dark genome to address numerous debilitating conditions is increasingly clear, and it has been incredibly exciting to see the momentum growing for therapeutic application of this science in interesting and complementary ways,” said Rosana Kapeller, M.D., Ph.D., President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of ROME. “This event will convene some of the top minds working on the dark genome to share insights and new ideas as we work toward a common goal of unlocking the dark genome to improve human health, and we are thrilled to co-host this inaugural symposium with Enara Bio.”

“We all recognize the complexity of the dark genome and know that it will take ambitious collaborations to speed progress in this field,” said Kevin Pojasek, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Enara Bio. “Alongside ROME, we’re excited to establish this event to share learnings widely, spark new avenues for research and new connections across our community. It’s vital we forge strong collaborative efforts to fully realize the the potential of the dark genome for bringing new therapies to patients as quickly as possible.”

The symposium will feature presentations and panel discussions on topics including viral mimicry, Dark Antigens® in cancer, mapping of the dark genome and gene regulation. A list of confirmed speakers and the agenda for the event can be found here. Participation at the in-person symposium is by invitation only. However, those interested in attending the livestream may reach out to DGS@rometx.com for more details.