Money on the Move: October 13 – 19
Investors can take their pick of life sciences companies, with more innovative ideas and treatments bring added to pipelines daily. Here's who brought in the sheaves this week.
CinCor Pharma
In support of its mission to treat hypertension, CKD and primary aldosteronism, CinCor Pharma roped in a massive $143 million Series B funding round. Oral small molecule CIN-107 will take the lion’s share of the new funds, as its shown potential to treat primary aldosteronism and treatment-resistant hypertension. Phase II trials are underway for both conditions, which face significant unmet medical need. The drug is also being researched for its effect on kidney function and blood pressure in CKD patients.
Rectify Pharmaceuticals
Learning your ABCs isn’t just for kindergarteners anymore. Rectify is developing disease-modifying precision therapies to address the underlying cause of serious genetic disease by restoring ABC transporter function in the body. Potential target areas for therapies include lungs, liver, GI, eye and CNS. With a fresh $100 million in Series A funds, Rectify hopes to achieve its first in-human proof-of-concept with its disease-modifying therapeutics. Cystic fibrosis is included on its list of disease targets.
D&D Pharmatech
With plans in the works for an IPO in Korea next year, D&D Pharmatech reeled in $51 million in Series C financing to support its Phase II clinical trials. D&D is advancing treatments for neurodegenerative, fibrotic and metabolic diseases. Current candidates include DD01, which is advancing into Phase II for obese patients with both diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. NLY01 is already in Phase 2 for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. A third candidate is being evaluated in patients with fibrotic disorders.
With a $50 million Series A, Tentarix emerged out of San Diego and Vancouver to create next-generation, antibody-based multifunctional biotherapeutics. The goal of Tentarix's novel platform is to generate multifunctional biotherapeutics that can conditionally activate or inhibit specific cell populations, potentially activating cancer-killing immune cells without other immune side effects. The company’s lead program is a multifunctional therapeutic with subunits that target the IL2R gamma receptor, the IL2R beta receptor and bind to cell surface proteins on a specific subset of T cells.
Abalos Therapeutics
By extending its Series A round, Abalos Therapeutics now has about $50 million in the bank to advance its first product candidate into the clinic. Two years after its launch, the German company is ready to run a Phase I/II in multiple solid tumors. An additional $37 million will drive its lead immuno-virotherapy candidates toward clinical proof-of-concept. Utilizing its proprietary Fast Evolution Platform, Abalos is creating variants that trigger highly precise immune responses for long-term cancer control.
Axial Therapeutics
Focused on improving the lives of neurological disease patients, Axial completed a $37.25 million Series C financing round, bringing the company’s total investment to $91.5 million to date. Axial’s platform in the microbiome gut-brain axis drives its drug discovery. Its lead candidate, AB-2004, is advancing to clinical development for irritability in children with autism. With small molecule drugs, Axial targets the impact of metabolites and bacteria in the gut to affect disease pathology, progression and symptoms.
Fighting the opioid crisis through medical device-provided pain relief, SPR closed on $37 million in an oversubscribed Series D. The fresh funds will be fueled into the commercial uptake of its FDA-cleared SPRINT Peripheral Nerve Stimulation System, as well as advancing next-gen tech and research. The system is a 60-day treatment to provide sustained pain relief and has now been used to treat over 6,500 patients in place of opioid or surgery for low back, shoulder, and knee pain, and neuropathic pain in amputees.
Topelia Australia
Coming alongside current vaccination programs, Topelia was launched to commercialize a novel COVID-19 Antiviral Tripal Therapy (ATT) for Australians in quarantine. The ATT is comprised of decades-old approved medications, from Professor Thomas Borody, who is responsible for developing successful treatments for Peptic Ulcers & Crohn’s Disease, recolonization of the bowel microbiome and 3 FDA-approved drugs. The idea is to prevent the long-COVID affects, damaging lungs, brain and other organs through this at-home medical treatment kit. Last week’s $25 million from investors in Australia, Asia and the US will support manufacture and clinical trials of the COVID-19 ATT.