Ocythera Secures Seed Financing from adMare BioInnovations and Fonds Impulsion to Advance Therapies for Rare Bone Diseases
January 27 2026
Montreal (QC), (January 28, 2026) — Ocythera, Inc., a Montreal-based biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies for rare bone diseases, today announced it has secured seed financing from adMare BioInnovations and Fonds Impulsion, managed by Investissement Quebec and funded by the gouvernement du Québec. This investment will accelerate Ocythera’s development of highly selective CYP26B1 inhibitors, a novel approach to treating rare bone disorders with improved safety and efficacy.
“This funding marks a critical milestone for Ocythera as we advance toward developing new therapeutic options for patients who currently have very few,” said Dr. Martin Petkovich, Scientific Founder of Ocythera and Professor at Queen’s University. “We are grateful for the Fonds Impulsion’s confidence in our vision and for adMare BioInnovation’s pivotal role in transforming this academic research into a company ready to attract investment and scale, and for their continued support. The scientific evidence is compelling and we are excited to advance this novel therapy and bring its life-changing potential closer to patients.”
“By supporting start-ups such as Ocythera, our government is placing innovation at the heart of public health. We are proud to help accelerate the growth of these small and medium sized enterprises, which are bringing innovative solutions to market while contributing to economic growth and the continued expansion of Québec’s life sciences ecosystem,” said Samuel Poulin, Minister Delegate for the Economy and Small and Medium Sized Enterprises and Minister responsible for Youth.
“Through investments like the one made in Ocythera, the Fonds Impulsion provides emerging companies with access to the critical financing they need to support their development and accelerate the advancement of their innovations. These efforts help strengthen Québec’s technology and life sciences ecosystem,” added Alex Laverdière, Vice President, Venture Capital at Investissement Québec.
Ocythera is an adMare BioInnovations portfolio company, created through a four-year collaboration with Queen’s University. As Canada’s engine for life sciences company creation and growth, adMare provided pre-seed capital along with scientific and industry expertise to generate robust preclinical data and intellectual property, create value, and build a strong and efficient operating structure, laying the foundation for Ocythera’s growth.
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For More Information
Media Contact
Bethany Moir
Senior Director, Public Affairs
adMare BioInnovations
bmoir@admarebio.com
About Ocythera
Based in Montreal, Ocythera is developing a new generation of non-retinoid therapies for rare bone diseases. Originating from pivotal research made at Queen’s University and drug discovery from adMare BioInnovations, the company is advancing highly selective compounds with an improved safety and efficacy profile, targeting one of the enzymes involved in the metabolism of retinoic acids. To learn more about Ocythera, visit ocythera.com.
About Fonds Impulsion
The Impulsion Fund is a venture capital fund dedicated to early stage, high growth potential innovative companies at the pre-seed and seed stages. We invest from the very first financing rounds, with initial investments ranging from $250,000 to $2 million, and have the capacity to reinvest in subsequent funding rounds.
Our mission is clear: to accelerate the growth of local start-ups by providing cornerstone capital, tailored support, and privileged access to a strategic network of partners committed to their development.
About Queen's University
Founded in 1841, Queen's University, Canada, is an internationally ranked research-intensive university with more than 31,000 students and 5,000 faculty and staff. Queen's is known for research in areas such as cancer detection and treatment, geoengineering, materials science, AI and supercomputing, and is home to the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics. Queen's welcomes researchers and students from around the world and is one of Canada's leading universities. To learn more, please visit queensu.ca
About adMare BioInnovations
adMare BioInnovations is Canada’s life sciences company creation engine, focused on building and scaling strong, investable companies. Our unique model identifies breakthrough innovations addressing unmet patient needs and supports early company creation and growth through pre-seed investment, commercial R&D and IP and business development expertise. This approach helps establish the scientific validation, value, and operating foundations needed to build globally competitive Canadian life science companies. To date, adMare has helped create 39 companies that have attracted $2.5 billion in risk capital, achieved a combined value of $5.8 billion, and created approximately 1,000 jobs.
adMare also provides more than 200,000 square feet of turnkey lab facilities and delivers industry-ready talent and executive leadership development programs to help Canadian life science companies scale and succeed. Learn more at www.admarebio.com
