SuppreMol GmbH, a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, today announced that it has closed a EUR 15.7 million Series B financing round. Lead investors are MIG AG (Munich, Germany), and BioMedInvest AG (Basel, Switzerland). Santo Holding GmbH (Stuttgart, Germany) and the existing investors ZETACUBE s.r.l. (Bresso, Italy), KfW Mittelstandsbank (Bonn, Germany), Bayern Kapital GmbH (Landshut, Germany) and Max-Planck-Gesellschaft e.v. (Munich, Germany) also participated in the round.
SuppreMol will use the proceeds to advance its lead product SM101, a recombinant human soluble Fc-gamma receptor IIb, for the treatment of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) to proof-of-concept in humans. ITP is a serious bleeding condition characterized by defective blood clotting due to a decreased number of platelets. SM101, which has been granted orphan medicinal product designation in the European Union, is scheduled to enter Phase I clinical studies in the first quarter of 2009.
Many autoimmune diseases start by the formation of so-called immunocomplexes that bind to immune cells, a process that is mediated by cellular Fc receptors. SuppreMol s approach to prevent this binding via soluble Fc receptors might represent a breakthrough in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. Rather than interfering with isolated components of the cascade, SuppreMol s therapeutic strategy aims at preventing the triggering of the cascade altogether. As a result, the feedback loop of autoantibody production, immunocomplex formation and restimulation of immune cells is inhibited.
In consequence, inflammation, organ damage and additional immunological activation are prevented.
"The financing round is an important milestone for us, as it extends our runway well into 2010", said Peter Buckel, CEO of SuppreMol. "Our approach is met with considerable interest already from the pharmaceutical industry. However, we believe that the present financing round provides us with an opportunity to create greater value by advancing the compound to Phase II proof-of-concept in man ourselves."
Dr Markus Hosang, General Partner at BioMedInvest and a new member of SuppreMol 's Board of Directors, agrees: " We are excited about the prospects of the SuppreMol technology, and in particular of the soluble Fc-gamma receptor IIb, as it has the potential to treat in a causal manner not only ITP, but a number of autoimmune diseases and related disorders including rheumatoid arthritis".
About MIG AG
MIG AG is a Munich-based venture capital firm with an investment focus on early to mid-stage life science and technology companies in German-speaking Europe. MIG AG is the initiator and management entity of six venture capital funds exclusively distributed by AWAG. More detailed information on MIG and MIG s investment portfolio can be found at www.mig-fonds.de and www.mig.ag.
About BioMedInvest AG
BioMedInvest AG is a leading independent European venture capital firm, providing private equity and mezzanine financing to early- to mid-stage healthcare and lifescience companies. Since 2003, BioMedInvest has invested in more than 20 highly innovative enterprises four of which have already successfully completed their IPO (Arpida AG, Santhera Pharmaceuticals AG) or have been acquired by leading companies in the industry (Glycart Biotechnology AG) or by strategic investors (Thommen Medical). With more than CHF 210 million in capital under management and a strong team of experienced specialists with broad expertise and extensive scientific and financial networks, BioMedInvest has established itself as one of the leading earlystage healthcare investors in Europe. For additional information please visit:
www.biomedvc.com
SuppreMol will use the proceeds to advance its lead product SM101, a recombinant human soluble Fc-gamma receptor IIb, for the treatment of idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) to proof-of-concept in humans. ITP is a serious bleeding condition characterized by defective blood clotting due to a decreased number of platelets. SM101, which has been granted orphan medicinal product designation in the European Union, is scheduled to enter Phase I clinical studies in the first quarter of 2009.
Many autoimmune diseases start by the formation of so-called immunocomplexes that bind to immune cells, a process that is mediated by cellular Fc receptors. SuppreMol s approach to prevent this binding via soluble Fc receptors might represent a breakthrough in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. Rather than interfering with isolated components of the cascade, SuppreMol s therapeutic strategy aims at preventing the triggering of the cascade altogether. As a result, the feedback loop of autoantibody production, immunocomplex formation and restimulation of immune cells is inhibited.
In consequence, inflammation, organ damage and additional immunological activation are prevented.
"The financing round is an important milestone for us, as it extends our runway well into 2010", said Peter Buckel, CEO of SuppreMol. "Our approach is met with considerable interest already from the pharmaceutical industry. However, we believe that the present financing round provides us with an opportunity to create greater value by advancing the compound to Phase II proof-of-concept in man ourselves."
Dr Markus Hosang, General Partner at BioMedInvest and a new member of SuppreMol 's Board of Directors, agrees: " We are excited about the prospects of the SuppreMol technology, and in particular of the soluble Fc-gamma receptor IIb, as it has the potential to treat in a causal manner not only ITP, but a number of autoimmune diseases and related disorders including rheumatoid arthritis".
About MIG AG
MIG AG is a Munich-based venture capital firm with an investment focus on early to mid-stage life science and technology companies in German-speaking Europe. MIG AG is the initiator and management entity of six venture capital funds exclusively distributed by AWAG. More detailed information on MIG and MIG s investment portfolio can be found at www.mig-fonds.de and www.mig.ag.
About BioMedInvest AG
BioMedInvest AG is a leading independent European venture capital firm, providing private equity and mezzanine financing to early- to mid-stage healthcare and lifescience companies. Since 2003, BioMedInvest has invested in more than 20 highly innovative enterprises four of which have already successfully completed their IPO (Arpida AG, Santhera Pharmaceuticals AG) or have been acquired by leading companies in the industry (Glycart Biotechnology AG) or by strategic investors (Thommen Medical). With more than CHF 210 million in capital under management and a strong team of experienced specialists with broad expertise and extensive scientific and financial networks, BioMedInvest has established itself as one of the leading earlystage healthcare investors in Europe. For additional information please visit:
www.biomedvc.com
