PHILADELPHIA, May 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardiokine, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development of drugs for the treatment and prevention of heart failure and related cardiovascular and metabolic indications, announced today the closing of a $50 million Series B preferred share equity offering.
The company intends to use the new funds to initiate Phase III trials for its lead product candidate Lixivaptan, a selective V2 vasopressin receptor antagonist that has demonstrated promising activity in treating hyponatremia. Hyponatremia is an imbalance of sodium and water in the body that contributes to morbidity and poor outcomes in disorders such as heart failure, cirrhosis and syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH), a condition associated with certain cancers and surgical procedures. Lixivaptan has been assessed in a number of Phase II studies and is expected to enter Phase III trials this summer.
Advent Venture Partners and Fidelity Biosciences are co-leading the new financing round, joined by Teachers Private Capital. All of Cardiokine’s Series A investors, including Perseus-Soros Biopharmaceutical Fund, HealthCare Ventures, Care Capital, CIBC Capital Partners and Burrill & Company joined these new investors in the Series B financing.
“Cardiokine has assembled an exceptionally strong management team for the development and commercialization of Lixivaptan. We are delighted to lead this financing that will enable the company to complete this important Phase III program while also adding other promising agents for cardiovascular and metabolic conditions to its pipeline,” said Dr. Shahzad Malik, general partner at Advent Venture Partners.
“There is a clear need for safe and effective therapies to treat hyponatremia,” said Dr. Stephen Knight, managing partner of Fidelity Biosciences. “As Lixivaptan progresses towards commercialization, we believe it offers significant potential to become an important new therapy for millions of patients whose prognosis is compromised by hyponatremia.”
As part of the financing, Dr. Malik and Dr. Knight will join Cardiokine’s Board of Directors.
Hyponatremia is the most common electrolyte disorder of hospitalized patients and is associated with a variety of diseases with high morbidity and mortality rates. Lixivaptan is a highly potent, non-peptide, selective vasopressin V2 receptor antagonist that promotes the excretion of excessive water from the body while conserving sodium and other electrolytes in both acute and chronic conditions. It may therefore have clinical utility to improve the imbalance of salt and water in disorders such as congestive heart failure, liver cirrhosis and conditions causing SIADH.
“This is an exciting time for Cardiokine, as we prepare to initiate pivotal trials with our lead compound Lixivaptan and also to selectively build our future development pipeline,” said David Brand, president and CEO of Cardiokine. “The caliber of our new investors and continuing support of our distinguished Series A investors are a testament to the clinical and commercial promise of Lixivaptan for the treatment of hyponatremia.”
About Advent Venture Partners
Advent Venture Partners is one of the most experienced technology venture capital firms in the UK. Established in 1981 it invests in both the Life Sciences and Information and Communications Technology sectors. Now in its 25th year Advent has over $900 million under management from institutional investors across Europe and the USA.
About Fidelity Biosciences
Fidelity Biosciences, a division of Fidelity Investments, one of the world’s leading providers of financial services, invests venture capital in private biopharmaceutical and medical technology companies. For more than 30 years, Fidelity Investments has been a significant presence in the venture capital and private equity industry, investing the firm’s own capital since 1969.
About Teachers’ Private Capital
Teachers’ Private Capital is the private equity arm of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, an independent corporation responsible for investing the fund’s assets and administering the pensions of Ontario’s 163,000 elementary and secondary school teachers and 101,000 retired teachers. The plan had net assets of $96 billion at December 31, 2005.
About Cardiokine
Cardiokine is a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development of pharmaceuticals for the treatment and prevention of heart failure and related cardiovascular and metabolic indications. Cardiokine is developing Lixivaptan, and is also in discussions regarding the in-license of additional drug candidates for development. The company is headquartered in Philadelphia.
Contacts: Corporate: Media: David Brand or Jim Mervis Stephen Gendel Cardiokine, Inc. GendeLLindheim BioCom Partners (215) 399-1200 (212) 918-4650
Cardiokine, Inc.
CONTACT: Corporate: David Brand or Jim Mervis, both of Cardiokine, Inc.,+1-215-399-1200; Media: Stephen Gendel of GendeLLindheim BioCom Partnersfor Cardiokine, Inc., +1-212-918-4650
