SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 2006--Accelerator Corporation, a privately-held biotechnology investment and development company, today announced the formation of Seredigm, Inc., the sixth company in the Accelerator portfolio. The syndicate of investors leading the Series A investment in Seredigm included Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Amgen Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners, MPM Capital, OVP Venture Partners and Versant Ventures.
Seredigm was founded to commercialize proprietary compositions that protect against tissue damage in a variety of acute or chronic medical conditions. Tissue damage plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of diverse life-threatening conditions, including a variety of acute cardiac indications and chronic diseases such as multiple sclerosis and asthma. According to the American Heart Association, more than 1 million Americans will have an acute cardiac event this year. By protecting against life-threatening tissue damage, Seredigm’s novel compositions may have significant clinical and commercial potential.
Seredigm’s technology was developed in the laboratories of John M. Harlan, M.D., and Robert K. Winn, Ph.D., at the University of Washington. Dr. Harlan is the Clement A. Finch Professor of Hematology and Adjunct Professor of Pathology at the University of Washington in Seattle, and has published more than 200 peer reviewed scientific papers on vascular disease and inflammation. Dr. Winn is a Research Professor in the Departments of Surgery and Physiology Biophysics and has made seminal contributions to the understanding of pathways and processes involved in cell death and tissue damage. Both researchers will continue to take active roles in developing and commercializing the technology. Michael Gallatin, Ph.D., currently a Venture Partner with Frazier Healthcare Ventures and previously a founding scientist, vice president and scientific director at ICOS Corp., will serve as a key scientific and clinical advisor to the company.
“Damage to critical tissues, such as those of the heart, nervous system and muscles during shock is in most cases irreversible, and gives rise to significant unmet medical need,” said Robert Nelsen, Managing Partner of ARCH Venture Partners. “Seredigm’s proprietary compositions have the potential to reduce or inhibit tissue damage, providing for the first time a mechanism for preventing a variety of diseases and chronic conditions, rather than just treating their symptoms. This would be a significant advance in patient care, and also creates a compelling investment opportunity.”
Under a collaboration agreement between Seredigm and the University of Washington, a significant amount of the company’s research and development activities will be conducted in the laboratories of Drs. Harlan and Winn. Accelerator plans to maintain Seredigm as a portfolio company from the technology’s preclinical proof-of-concept stage to the initiation of human clinical trials.
James Severson, Vice Provost of UW TechTransfer, commented: “The University of Washington is a leader in the discovery and innovation of cutting-edge biomedical technologies. Realizing the clinical and commercial value of those technologies requires effective collaboration with leaders in the biopharmaceutical and venture capital communities. We believe that Accelerator offers a unique set of resources and assets that are critical to the productive transition of technology from academia, to industry and on toward the market. The University of Washington is committed to being part of the solution to today’s most pressing health and technology challenges. We are pleased to collaborate with Accelerator to achieve this important objective and look forward to working with the Accelerator team in the future.”
“We are pleased to establish our first Accelerator portfolio company founded on technology developed at the University of Washington,” added Carl Weissman, President and CEO of Accelerator. “We look forward to future collaborations that will support the translation of innovative science developed at this world-class institution into treatment changing therapies. Seredigm is the sixth and final investment that we will make in Accelerator I and we are looking forward to building more exciting biotech companies in Accelerator II.”
About Accelerator Corporation
Accelerator Corporation, founded in 2003, is a privately-held biotechnology investment and development company located in Seattle, Washington, USA. The company is building the next generation of life-enhancing biotechnology companies by providing the resources critical to accelerating the development of nascent leading-edge biotechnologies. These key resources, provided by global life science leaders -- Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., Amgen Ventures, ARCH Venture Partners, MPM Capital, OVP Venture Partners and Versant Ventures, the Institute for Systems Biology and Accelerator Corporation -- include committed capital from top-tier venture capital firms, state-of-the-art facilities, world-class scientific and technical expertise and support, and experienced biotechnology start-up business management and support. In June 2006, VLST Corp., the second investment in the Accelerator portfolio, successfully closed a $55 million Series B financing. For more information, please go to: www.acceleratorcorp.com.
Contact: Accelerator Corporation, Seattle Jessica Strain, 206-957-7300 jstrain@acceleratorcorp.com
Source: Accelerator Corporation
