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The Vibrant Philly Biotech Scene: Proteovant Therapeutics Using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to Develop PROTACs

Posted in Artificial Intelligence in CANCER, Artificial Intelligence in Medicine - Applications in Therapeutics, Autophagy, Autophagy-Modulating Proteins, BioIT: BioInformatics, Cell Biology, Signaling & Cell Circuits, Cell death pathways, Chemical Biology and its relations to Metabolic Disease, Disease Biology, Small Molecules in Development of Therapeutic Drugs, Investment in Technological Breakthrough, Machine Learning, Proteolysis, Proteosome, Signaling, Signaling & Cell Circuits, Technology Transfer: Biotech and Pharmaceutical, Ubiquitin, Ubiquitinylation, Unfolded Protein Response (UPR), tagged Artificial intelligence, biotech startup, early ventures, Machine Learning, philadelphia, PROTAC, Proteovant, Therapeutic innovations, ubiquitin-proteosome, University of Michigan, Venture capital on October 26, 2021| Leave a Comment »

The Vibrant Philly Biotech Scene: Proteovant Therapeutics Using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to Develop PROTACs

Reporter: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D.

It has been a while since I have added to this series but there have been a plethora of exciting biotech startups in the Philadelphia area, and many new startups combining technology, biotech, and machine learning. One such exciting biotech is Proteovant Therapeutics, which is combining the new PROTAC (Proteolysis-Targeting Chimera) technology with their in house ability to utilize machine learning and artificial intelligence to design these types of compounds to multiple intracellular targets.

PROTACs (which actually is under a trademark name of Arvinus Operations, but is also refered to as Protein Degraders. These PROTACs take advantage of the cell protein homeostatic mechanism of ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation, which is a very specific targeted process which regulates protein levels of various transcription factors, protooncogenes, and receptors. In essence this regulated proteolyic process is needed for normal cellular function, and alterations in this process may lead to oncogenesis, or a proteotoxic crisis leading to mitophagy, autophagy and cellular death. The key to this technology is using chemical linkers to associate an E3 ligase with a protein target of interest. E3 ligases are the rate limiting step in marking the proteins bound for degradation by the proteosome with ubiquitin chains.

Structure-Based PROTAC Design: Project Overview

A review of this process as well as PROTACs can be found elsewhere in articles (and future articles) on this Open Access Journal.

Protevant have made two important collaborations:

Oncopia Therapeutics: came out of University of Michigan Innovation Hub and lab of Shaomeng Wang, who developed a library of BET and MDM2 based protein degraders. In 2020 was aquired by Riovant Sciences.
Riovant Sciences: uses computer aided design of protein degraders

Proteovant Company Description:

Proteovant is a newly launched development-stage biotech company focusing on discovery and development of disease-modifying therapies by harnessing natural protein homeostasis processes. We have recently acquired numerous assets at discovery and development stages from Oncopia, a protein degradation company. Our lead program is on track to enter IND in 2021. Proteovant is building a strong drug discovery engine by combining deep drugging expertise with innovative platforms including Roivant’s AI capabilities to accelerate discovery and development of protein degraders to address unmet needs across all therapeutic areas. The company has recently secured $200M funding from SK Holdings in addition to investment from Roivant Sciences. Our current therapeutic focus includes but is not limited to oncology, immunology and neurology. We remain agnostic to therapeutic area and will expand therapeutic focus based on opportunity. Proteovant is expanding its discovery and development teams and has multiple positions in biology, chemistry, biochemistry, DMPK, bioinformatics and CMC at many levels. Our R&D organization is located close to major pharmaceutical companies in Eastern Pennsylvania with a second site close to biotech companies in Boston area.

Protein degradation
Source: Protevant

The ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) is responsible for maintaining protein homeostasis. Targeted protein degradation by the UPS is a cellular process that involves marking proteins and guiding them to the proteasome for destruction. We leverage this physiological cellular machinery to target and destroy disease-causing proteins.

Unlike traditional small molecule inhibitors, our approach is not limited by the classic “active site” requirements. For example, we can target transcription factors and scaffold proteins that lack a catalytic pocket. These classes of proteins, historically, have been very difficult to drug. Further, we selectively degrade target proteins, rather than isozymes or paralogous proteins with high homology. Because of the catalytic nature of the interactions, it is possible to achieve efficacy at lower doses with prolonged duration while decreasing dose-limiting toxicities.

Biological targets once deemed “undruggable” are now within reach.

About Riovant Sciences: from PRNewsWire https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/roivant-unveils-targeted-protein-degradation-platform-301186928.html

Roivant develops transformative medicines faster by building technologies and developing talent in creative ways, leveraging the Roivant platform to launch “Vants” – nimble and focused biopharmaceutical and health technology companies. These Vants include Proteovant but also Dermovant, ImmunoVant,as well as others.

Roivant’s drug discovery capabilities include the leading computational physics-based platform for in silico drug design and optimization as well as machine learning-based models for protein degradation.

The integration of our computational and experimental engines enables the rapid design of molecules with high precision and fidelity to address challenging targets for diseases with high unmet need.

Our current modalities include small molecules, heterobifunctionals and molecular glues.

Roivant Unveils Targeted Protein Degradation Platform

– First therapeutic candidate on track to enter clinical studies in 2021

– Computationally-designed degraders for six targets currently in preclinical development

– Acquisition of Oncopia Therapeutics and research collaboration with lab of Dr. Shaomeng Wang at the University of Michigan to add diverse pipeline of current and future compounds

– Clinical-stage degraders will provide foundation for multiple new Vants in distinct disease areas

– Platform supported by $200 million strategic investment from SK Holdings

Greylock Partners Announces Unique $500 Million Venture to act as Seed Capital Funding for Earliest Stage Startups

Posted in BioTechnology - Venture Creation, BioTechnology - Venture Creation, Venture Capital, Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetics, Technology Advance Assessment of, Technology Transfer: Biotech and Pharmaceutical, Trends in Global Economy, US and Global Economy: Trends and Findings, Venture Capital, tagged Biotech Investment and Venture Growth: The Franchising of Intellectual Property as a Business Model, biotech startup, Global Partnering & Biotech Investment, Greylock Partners, Reid Hoffman, seed capital, seed funding, startup funding, tech startup, Venture capital on October 16, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Greylock Partners Announces Unique $500 Million Venture to act as Seed Capital Funding for Earliest Stage Startups

Reporter: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D.

Greylock Partners CEO Reid Hoffman announces a $500 million fund to help the earliest stage startups find capital.

See video below:

https://www.bloomberg.com/multimedia/api/embed/iframe?id=798828e9-7850-4c83-9348-a35d5fad3e1c

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2021-09-24/intv-sara-guoh-greylock-partners-video

See transcript from Bloomberg.com

00:00This is a lot of money for seed stage deals which is typicallysmaller. Why do you want to make seed such a priority.

00:09So see it has always been a priority for us. We’ve been activeat this stage for a long time and some of our biggest wins

00:15historically have been incubation and seed. So I think companieslike Workday and Palo Alto Networks and more recently abnormal

00:21and Snorkel. And then this year 70 percent of our investmentsyou must mints or seeds before we announce this fund. And so

00:29when we saw this level of opportunity we also want to make surewe had enough funding to really back entrepreneurs and to

00:36support them through their journey and make sure entrepreneursalso know they have different options at the seed for the type

00:41of partners they work with. Now at the seed stage you’re talkingabout companies in their infancy. How early are you investing. I

00:49mean is this ideas on a napkin stage with a couple ofentrepreneurs that you believe in or is it beyond that.

00:58So there definitely is a whole range. We don’t catch everysingle person. Like the day they left their job. Right. But you

01:04know abnormal was to see it in 2018 when it was a slide deck andtwo co-founders. We backed another company recently and self on

01:12first capital. That was a repeat founder we have history with.Similarly no product yet. Just an idea and an early team. And so

01:20the range of when we do see it really depends on when weencounter companies. We do like to get to know people as early

01:26as possible. And sometimes that’s the right time for us to writethe check. Obviously Greylock is a multi-stage venture venture

01:32capital firm and I think founders might have the question here.You know if you give me the seed funding we’ll follow on and

01:38reserves come out of that same bucket. And what could this meanin terms of a longer term relationship with Greylock. What’s the

01:46answer to that. So the first thing I’d start with is seeds forus our core investments. Right. So many firms look at them as

01:54options to then follow on. We look at seeds as investments we’retrying to make money on. We’re building a relationship for the

02:01long term to begin with. Right. So. So I’d start with that thenI’d say it is a third of our fund. So it is a big piece of our

02:09investing. And and you know there are many instances where wethen follow on and invest even more because our conviction

02:16continues or even grows. But the point of us doing seed is notjust a follow on it’s to make that investment. How big is each

02:24deal. I mean would you say that seed is the new series A.I think I think that.

02:33Well let’s see the market data would tell us that round sizesoverall have increased for the same level of progress. And I

02:41think that makes sense right. And the reason being the markethas become a lot smarter at the attractiveness of early stage

02:48technology opportunities. And so great returns in tech venturecapital over many years mean there’s more capital than ever and

02:57people are savvier about software and Internet companies. ButI’d say there is you know I think kind of the noble creature

03:04doesn’t matter so much. We think of it as being the firstinstitutional partner to go to a set of founders. The world is

03:12changing quickly. I mean we’re still in the middle of apandemic. And who would’ve known that you know working from home

03:16was going to be a thing 18 months ago. What are the trends thatyou are most excited about right now that you’re doubling down

03:22on at the seed stage.Yeah. So we invest across the technology spectrum business

03:30consumer. The one you just mentioned in terms of just the seachange of the pandemic in terms of how we do our work together

03:36as one. I’m really excited about but we’ve been we’ve beeninvesting in let’s say just this. There’s a shortage globally

03:44because the pandemic. But even before of human connection andand intimacy and people look for it online. And so we invest in

03:53companies like Dischord and Common ROOM and Promotion that helppeople connect more online. So that’s when we’ll continue to

04:00invest in. And then of course we’re investing across all of yourusual range of SAS social data A.I. etc. and then spending more

04:10and more time in fintech and crypto in particular. Now what arethe potential problems with seed stage. Is that at a certain

04:16point as the company develops maybe they pivot they change. Overtime they could potentially ultimately compete with another one

04:23of your core portfolio companies. How do you manage that.So it’s a good question but it is also something that doesn’t

04:30only happen at the scene and funnily enough Greylock has been aninvestor in several companies that were like great companies

04:37post pivot right. So like first semester and discord and nextdoor after they decided to be what they are today. And so that

04:46you know I’d start with the premise of our our philosophy isthat the company should do what’s best for the company. And we

04:53know our our philosophy is to be fully behind companies and notto go invest in a bunch of competitors in a sector just because

04:59we like this sector. But if that were to happen you know wewould we would just divide those interests within the firm and

05:06like make sure that there’s no information flow and just addressit in a reasonable way. I’ve talked with many of your partners

05:12over the years about investing in more women. And I’m curioushow you look at it as an opportunity to potentially you know

05:22spread the wealth a little bit across more women entrepreneurspeople of color people who historically haven’t gotten a chance

05:29in Silicon Valley and Silicon Valley hasn’t benefited from theirideas.

05:34OK. So I’d say this is an issue that’s near and dear to myheart. We are working on it. Two of the last three founders I

05:40backed are women. One is the seed stage founder. One of thefounders. I backed at the seed stage is Hispanic. But. But I

05:49would say you know one thing I want to make sure is clear. Likeyou want to back great founders from diverse backgrounds across

05:56the spectrum. And like we wouldn’t like do it more in seedbecause seed isn’t important. Because it is important to us.

06:02Right. It’s just across the portfolio. This is a priority.

From TechStartups

Source: https://techstartups.com/2021/09/22/greylock-partners-raises-500-million-invest-seed-stage-startups/

Greylock Partners raises $500 million to invest in seed-stage startups

Nickie LouisePOSTED ON SEPTEMBER 22, 2021

Greylock Partners has raised $500 million to invest exclusively in seed-stage startups. The announcement comes a year after the firm raised $1 billion for its 16th flagship fund to invest in early- and growth-stage tech startups.

Guo and general partner Saam Motamedi said in an interview the fund is part of an expansion of a $1.1 billion fund, which we reported last year, to $1.6 billion, The Information reported. The funding is among the industry’s largest devoted to seed investments, which often represent a startup’s first outside capital.

The pool of funds will give the 56-year-old venture capital firm the ability to write large checks at “lean-in valuations” and emphasize its commitment to early-stage investing, said general partner Sarah Guo. In a thread post on Twitter, Greylock said, “We at @GreylockVC are excited to announce we’ve raised $500M dedicated to seed investing. This is the industry’s largest pool of venture capital dedicated to backing founders at day one.”

Press Release from Grelock

$500M for Seeds

LPBI Update – Newsletter #1, February 2020

Posted in 3D Printing for Medical Application, Cancer and Current Therapeutics, Cancer Genomics, Personalized and Precision Medicine & Genomic Research, tagged bioprinting, genomics, oncology expertise, Personalized medicine, Venture capital on January 29, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Reporter: Gail S. Thornton, M.A.

LPBI Update

Leaders in Pharmaceutical Business Intelligence (LPBI) Group, Newsletter #1 – February 2020

Welcome to the premier issue of LPBI Group News, where readers can find relevant news and updates about science, business and medical innovation. This newsletter is distributed as a service for our readers.

The Conference Forum Highlights Immuno-Oncology 360° in New York

The Conference Forum is hosting Immuno-Oncology 360°, which reports on current data and developments of immuno-oncology in the science and business communities. The summit takes place on February 26-28 at the Crowne Plaza Times Square in New York.

Please visit www.io360summit.com to register and use code LPBI20 for a 20% discount.

Ahead of the conference, Immuno-Oncology 360° has created a series celebrating their women speakers in the work they are doing to fight cancer. To read the series, visit: https://theconferenceforum.org/conferences/immuno-oncology-360/io360%cb%9a-leadership-interviews/

This information is published in conjunction with the Immuno-Oncology 360° Summit.

Venture Summit Attracts Top Innovators in Silicon Valley

Leaders in Pharmaceutical Business Intelligence (LPBI) Group is one of the sponsors of Venture Summit | West, “Where Innovation Meets Capital.”

The meeting will be held on March 23-24 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Silicon Valley.

Special offer: Register Now & Save $450 off (Use discount code “LPBI-VIP”)

For more information, please visit: https://pharmaceuticalintelligence.com/2019/12/17/venture-summit-west-where-innovation-meets-capital-march-23rd-24th-2020-santa-clara-convention-center-silicon-valley/

e-Proceedings of 15th Annual Personalized Medicine Conference at Harvard Medical School

The 15^th Annual Personalized Medicine Conference at Harvard Medical School, Boston last year [November 13-14, 2019], entitled The Paradigm Evolves, explored the science, business and policy issues facing personalized medicine. In today’s world, scientists need to understand how molecular diagnostics augmented by artificial intelligence, data analytics and digital health empowers physicians and patients in their health care decisions.

Please visit for LPBI Group coverage of the meeting, including social media activities at the conference:

https://pharmaceuticalintelligence.com/2019/07/19/15th-annual-personalized-medicine-conference-at-harvard-medical-school-the-paradigm-evolves-november-13-14-2019-%e2%80%a2-harvard-medical-school-boston-ma/

https://pharmaceuticalintelligence.com/2019/11/15/tweets-and-retweets-by-aviva1950-and-by-pharma_bi-for-15th-annual-personalized-medicine-conference-at-harvard-medical-school-the-paradigm-evolves-november-13-14-2019-%e2%80%a2/

3D Medical BioPrinting Technology Featured in Podcast

LPBI Group leaders, Aviva Lev-Ari, Ph.D., R.N., Stephen Williams, Ph.D., and Irina Robu, Ph.D., spoke with Partners in Health and Biz, a half-hour audio podcast that reaches 40,000 listeners, about the topic of 3D Medical BioPrinting Technology: A Revolution in Medicine.

Please click on this link to hear the podcast. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laozyrfi29c.

The topic is also the title of a recently offered e-book by the LPBI Group on 3D BioPrinting, available on Amazon/Kindle Direct [https://www.amazon.com/Medical-BioPrinting-Technologies-Patient-centered-Patient-Centered-ebook/dp/B078QVDV2W].

The 3D BioPrinting technology is being used to develop advanced medical practices that will help with previously difficult processes, such as delivering drugs via micro-robots, targeting specific cancer cells and even assisting in difficult eye operations.

The table of contents in this book includes: Chapter 1: 3D Bioprinting: Latest Innovations in a Forty year-old Technology. Chapter 2: LPBI Initiative on 3D BioPrinting, Chapter 3: Cardiovascular BioPrinting, Chapter 4: Medical and Surgical Repairs – Advances in R&D Research, Chapter 5: Organ on a Chip, Chapter 6: FDA Regulatory Technology Issues, Chapter 7: DNA Origami, Chapter 8: Aptamers and 3D Scaffold Binding, Chapter 9: Advances and Future Prospects, Chapter 10: BioInks and MEMS, Chapter 11: BioMedical MEMS, Chapter 12: 3D Solid Organ Printing and Chapter 13: Medical 3D Printing: Sources and Trade Groups – List of Secondary Material.

New e-Book: Latest in Genomics Methodologies for Therapeutics: Gene Editing, NGS & BioInformatics, Simulations and the Genome Ontology

LPBI Group’s latest e-book entitled, Latest in Genomics Methodologies for Therapeutics: Gene Editing, NGS & BioInformatics, Simulations and the Genome Ontology, offers the reader content curation with embedded videos and audio podcasts, real-time conference e-Proceedings by LPBI’s scientists and professors and archived tweets of quotes from speakers at leading biotechnology conferences.

Please click on this link on Amazon/Kindle Direct: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08385KF87

The book integrates in a single volume four distinct perspectives: basic science, technologies and methodologies, clinical aspects and business and legal aspects of genomics research. “The materials in this book represents the scientific frontier in Biological Sciences and Medicine related to the genomics aspects of disease onset,” said Aviva Lev-Ari, Ph.D., R.N., and founder of LPBI Group.

The book addresses:

aspects of life: the Cell, the Organ, the Human Body and Human Populations;
methodologies of genomic data analysis: Next Generation Sequencing, Gene Editing, AI, Single Cell Genomics, Evolution Biology Genomics, Simulation Modeling in Genomics, Genotypes and Phenotypes Modeling, measurement of Epigenomics effects on disease, and developments in Pharmaco-Genomics.

Additionally, artificial Intelligence in medicine is covered in Part 3 of the e-Book, which represents the frontier in this emerging field, with topics, such as the science, technologies and methodologies, clinical aspects, business and legal implications as well as the latest machine learning algorithms harnessed for medical diagnosis.

This e-book is significant because it:

contains 326 articles on topics, such as gene editing, bioinformatics and genome ontology;
incorporates 74 e-Proceedings created in real time by the Book’s authors and editors
includes four collections of Tweets representing quotes from speakers at global leading conferences on Genomics
has 13 locations of Videos and Audio Podcasts that serve to enrich the e-Reader’s experience.

We welcome your comments and suggestions. Please send them to Aviva Lev-Ari at avivalev-ari@alum.berkeley.edu.

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A Message from Faculty Director Lee Fleming on Latest Issue of Crowdfunding; From the Fung Institute at Berkeley

Posted in Venture Capital, tagged angel investors, bioinvestment, crowd-funding, Crowdfunding, JOBS Act, Venture capital on March 29, 2016| Leave a Comment »

A Message from Faculty Director Lee Fleming on Latest Issue of Crowdfunding

Reported from source: http://funginstitute.berkeley.edu/directors-blog/message-faculty-director-lee-fleming-latest-issue-crowdfunding/

I would like to announce our special issue in the California Management Review on CrowdFunding (thank you to Olav Sorenson for co-editing and the Kauffman Foundation for support). We have a broad and practical set of articles that should appeal to practitioners and academics alike (please see this linkfor the special issue introduction by Olav and myself).

The landscape of CF can be quite confusing; Peter Younkin and Keyvan Kashkooli give us a mapping of the landscape by asking a simple question, namely, what problems does CF solve? Gary Dushnitsky and his co-authors provide a rich description of CF in Europe; they identify the surprising strength of national boundaries. Ethan Mollick and Alicia Robb provide us an easily understood synopsis of their research on the importance of CF for under-served entrepreneurs. Carina Thurridl and Bernadette Kamleitner help aspiring entrepreneurs understand how to bundle the optimal set of rewards to attract backers. Ajay Agrawal and co-authors describe a recent trend in CF, namely, the emergence of lead investors and syndicates. Finally, Valentina Assenova and Olav lead a round table discussion of industry leaders, including Jason Best, Mike Cagney, Douglas Ellenoff, Kate Karas, Jay Moon, Sherwood Neiss, and Ron Suber. Happy reading!

Here is a short video based on our article:

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Bad News this Week for Biotech Deals? News from Biospace on Deals week of 3/7/2016

Posted in Pharmaceutical Industry Competitive Intelligence, US and Global Economy: Trends and Findings, Venture Capital, tagged #biotech, Biotech Investment and Venture Growth: The Franchising of Intellectual Property as a Business Model, Funding, VC, Venture capital on March 14, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Bad News this Week for Biotech Deals?

Curator: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D

Last week in biotech ( 3/7-3/11/2016) had a plethora of disappointing stories related to biotech drug development and hits to biotech investing and VC. Since October of 2016 the biotech index has lost 35% to today (see Biotech ETFs Hit 52-Week Lows: Time to Buy?) however were the hit back in October a signal of some of the listed events below (as shown on Biospace News) and includes:

an long-time biotech startup with failure of mesothelioma trial who has struggled in the past
multiple clinical trial failures forces the de-listing of a NASDAQ company (other biotechs this year had similar problems)
more problems with drug development for Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy

GlaxoSmithKline dumps Five Prime’s cancer drug in the midst of Phase I

March 11, 2016 | By Damian Garde

GSK gave Five Prime a 180-day notice that it’s nixing its license to the company’s FP-1039, which is designed to block the spread of cancer by interrupting protein signaling. The decision follows GSK’s January move to stop developing FP-1039 in squamous non-small cell lung cancer due to the rise of immuno-oncology therapies from Merck ($MRK), Bristol-Myers Squibb ($BMY) and others, citing a “change in treatment paradigms.”GlaxoSmithKline ($GSK) is cutting ties with Five Prime Therapeutics’ ($FPRX) in-development cancer therapy, backing out in the middle of a mesothelioma trial.

Now GSK is set to abandon a drug it inherited through its $3 billion acquisition of Human Genome Sciences in 2012, leaving Five Prime to go it alone in an ongoing Phase Ib study testing FP-1039 against mesothelioma. Five Prime said it plans to work with GSK to complete enrollment in the study, adding that it “continues to be encouraged” by the drug’s potential in mesothelioma.

Embattled Bay Area XOMA (XOMA) Terminates Gevokizumab Trials, Slashes Headcount by 50%

3/11/2016 6:39:17 AM

March 11, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

BERKELY, Calif. – Troubled XOMA Corp. (XOMA) is terminating half of its workforce after a late-stage failure of its experimental drug gevokizumab for treatment of pyoderma gangrenosum, the San Francisco Business Times reported this morning.

Following the announcement, Xoma’s stock is down this morning about 5 percent, trading at 91 cents per share as of this writing.

Xoma said it is interested in divesting itself of gevokizumab. In a statement, the company said several companies have approached Xoma about acquiring the drug. Gevokizumab binds to interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), a pro-inflammatory cytokine. Xoma said it will make all information about the drug and study information available to potential buyers. Gevokizumab has had a troubled history with Xoma. The company has halted several trials with the drug for various diseases, including diabetes and a blinding eye disease, the Times reported. In 2014, Xoma was forced to stop testing gevokizumab as an arthritis treatment after the drug did not show significant benefit against placebo after a six-month period.

Struggling Eleven Biotherapeutics (EBIO) Gets Delisting Notice from Nasdaq After Back-to-Back Clinical Trial Failures

3/10/2016 6:07:38 AM

March 10, 2016
By Mark Terry, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

With one piece of bad news after another, Cambridge, Mass.-based Eleven Biotherapeutics Inc. (EBIO) filed a Form 8-Kwith the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, addressed a delisting notification it received from the Nasdaq on Mar. 3.

The Nasdaq informed the company that its stock dropped below $1 a share, and that the stockholder equity didn’t comply with the $5,000,000 minimum stockholders’ equity requirement. As a result, it has 180 days to comply with Nasdaq rules.

On Jan. 10, the company announced that its Phase III clinical trial of EBI-005 (isunakinra) for severe allergic conjunctivitis did not meet its primary endpoint.

In May 2015, the company reported that its drug, EBI-005, for moderate to severe dry eye disease, failed to prevent damage to the cornea or reduce eye pain in comparison to the control group.

In a January statement, Abbie Celniker, president and chief executive officer of Eleven Biotherapeutics, said, “We are disappointed that isunakinra failed to meet its primary endpoint, and based on these overall results we see no immediate path forward in allergic conjunctivitis. Our efforts will be focused on submitting an investigational new drug application (IND) for EBI-031 in diabetic macular edema in the first half of 2016.”

EBI-031 was designed for intravitreal delivery using the company’s AMP-Rx platform. The drug blocks both free IL-6 and IL-6 complexed to the soluble IL-6 receptor (IL-6R). The compound is being developed to treat diabetic macular edema (DME) and uveitis.

DMD Setback Prompts Sarepta (SRPT) to Shutter West Coast Location and Consolidate to Massachusetts, 30 Jobs Gone

3/9/2016 6:13:13 AM

March 9, 2016
By Mark Terry, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

Cambridge, Mass.-based Sarepta Therapeutics (SRPT) announced yesterday that it was shuttering its research-and-development manufacturing facility in Corvalis, Ore. Most of the employees there are expected to move to Sarepta’s facilities in Andover and Cambridge, Mass. About 30 people are expected to be laid off.

On Jan. 21, Sarepta announced that, with an impending snowstorm on the east coast, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s meeting to review the company’s New Drug Application (NDA) for eteplirsen to treat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) was postponed.

DMD is a muscle wasting disease caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene. The disease is progressive and generally causes death in early adulthood. Complications include serious heart or respiratory-related problems. It mostly affects boys, about 1 in every 3,500 to 5,000 male children.

On Jan. 15, an FDA advisory committee decided to reschedule the meeting, at which point a recommendation or approval decision will be made. That meeting of the Peripheral and Central Nervous System Advisory Committee has not been rescheduled yet, but Sarepta believes it will be prior to May 26, which is the PDUFA date. The Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) is a law that allows the FDA to collect an application fee from drug companies when an NDA or Biologics License Application (BLA) is submitted.

The DMD drug arena has been fraught with failures and bad news this year. San Rafael, Calif.-based BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN)’s application for its DMD drug Kyndrisa (drisapersen) was turned down by the FDA on Jan. 15. The FDA argued that Kyndrisa didn’t show enough benefit.

On Jan. 25, Cambridge, Mass.-based Akashi Therapeuticsannounced that it had halted its DMD trial for HT-100 after one of its patients developed serious, life-threatening health problems. In that DMD is a serious, life-threatening health problem in itself, it’s not clear if the patient’s problems are directly related to the drug. The patient was receiving the highest dose in the HALO trial, while others in the trial with lower doses were not showing adverse side effects.

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GSK Partners With SG3 Ventures to Add $100 Million to the Pittsburgh Biotech Scene

Posted in Investment in Technological Breakthrough, Pharmaceutical R&D Investment, Venture Capital, tagged biotech startup, GlaxoSmithKline, Global Partnering & Biotech Investment, philadelphia, Pittsburgh, VC, Venture capital on March 11, 2016| Leave a Comment »

GSK Partners With SG3 Ventures to Add $100 Million to the Pittsburgh Biotech Scene

From Biospace News: Backed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), New VC Firm SG3 Ventures Has $100 Million to Bet on Pittsburg Startups

Reporter: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D.

Source: http://www.biospace.com/News/backed-by-glaxosmithkline-new-vc-firm-sg3-ventures/412039/source=TopBreaking?intcid=homepage-seekernewssection-tabtopbreakingnews

Pittsburgh-area entrepreneurs will soon have another funding option for growing early phase startup companies.

Pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline has thrown its support behind the creation of a $100 million venture capital fund, which will help meet a need for early stage business startup capital in the Pittsburgh area. Philadelphia-based SG3 Ventures anticipates awarding its first round of funding in about a year, according to Brian McVeigh, vice president of worldwide business development transactions and investment management at GSK.

From Pittsburgh Post Gazette: http://www.post-gazette.com/business/healthcare-business/2016/03/11/New-early-stage-venture-fund-forming-with-eye-on-Pittsburgh-startups/stories/201603090016

New early-stage venture fund forming with eye on Pittsburgh startups

March 11, 2016 12:00 AM

By Kris B. Mamula / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh-area entrepreneurs will soon have another funding option for growing early phase startup companies.

“There is a huge untapped opportunity,” Mr. McVeigh said. “Let’s bring the money here.”

New prescription drug treatments will be a priority for fund investments, but a balanced portfolio including life science technologies is planned.

In the venture ecosystem, insurers, pension funds and other institutions use such funds to invest in promising startup companies — both to balance their portfolios and to get a shot at investment returns that would not otherwise be possible. The venture funds oversee allotting capital to a portfolio of startup companies.

The investment money enables startups to mature and eventually bring in other investors through a public offering or acquisition by a larger company, generating money to repay the initial investors.

GSK and other big pharmaceutical companies are making similar investments to maximize returns and keep their product pipelines full, but GSK has been focusing on earlier stage companies, shifting its focus to pre-clinical technologies about five years ago, Mr. McVeigh said.

In addition, Big Pharma is increasingly relying on outsourced research and development operations, often in collaboration with universities, to fill industry product pipelines. GSK has funded a number of these initiatives, including a cancer collaboration with the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center.

SG3 Managing Director Keith Marmer said the new venture fund will be committed to technologies developed outside the better known tech hubs of Silicon Valley and Boston-Cambridge.

“We’re here, we’re from here, and we want to be here,” he told a group of entrepreneurs at a recent breakfast meeting in Oakland. “Sustaining technology through research funding isn’t happening anywhere.”

Parsippany N.J.-based GSK closed its consumer health care operations in Moon in 2015, eliminating 274 jobs a year after the company’s merger with Swiss vaccine maker Novartis. Mr. McVeigh works at the company’s offices in King of Prussia, Pa.

With federal research dollars flat in recent years, universities nationwide have been turning to commercialization of intellectual property as a new source of revenue.

At the same time, Pittsburgh’s startup community is showing signs of new life.

Among the signs: Patrick Gallagher’s commitment to the commercialization of faculty research since becoming University of Pittsburgh chancellor 18 months ago, awakening a sleeping giant of economic development and innovation and hospital system UPMC’s creation of a commercial enterprises arm to fund promising technologies.

The timing couldn’t be better for venture capital funds like SG3.

Nationwide, early stage funding has been chasing fewer deals, according to a report by Money Tree, which was compiled by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association based on data provided by Thomson Reuters.

Early stage investments nationally last year totaled $19.8 billion, a 23 percent increase from $16.1 billion in 2014. But the number of deals were essentially flat from the previous year, suggesting that some companies were left out in the cold.

What’s more, the amount of money available to Pittsburgh-area entrepreneurs after the earliest rounds of investment isn’t keeping pace with the innovations coming out of the city’s universities, said Dietrich Stephan, a serial entrepreneur who also chairs the human genetics department at Pitt.

“There’s real substance here,” he said. “Without money, we can’t build.”

Seed investment funding — the earliest level of funding — is not a problem in Pittsburgh, said Buchanan Ingersoll Rooney PC lawyer Jeremy Garvey, who also chairs the Bridgeville-based Pittsburgh Venture Capital Association.

“The predominance of funding in this market comes in the earliest stages,” he said. “Institutional funding is much harder to get in this market.”

Early stage venture funding began drying up with the stock market crash of 2008, which also chilled the financial markets for initial public offerings for biotech companies, Mr. McVeigh said. Eventually, conditions thawed for IPOs, but the lower valuations for new companies than before 2008 made that less attractive than before.

“We’re really energized by the energy there” in Pittsburgh, Mr. McVeigh said. “We’re looking to bring venture capital to the region.”

Kris B. Mamula: kmamula@post-gazette.com

About SG3 Ventures

SG3 Ventures is an early stage life science venture capital firm. Our primary focus in on therapeutics and digital health; however, we will invest opportunistically when presented with a potential vehicle to drive superior returns for our limited partners. We are active in company formation, deploying financial and human resources to help deliver value. In addition, we access deep industry networks to ensure a path to market with strong commercial partnerships built into our companies from the beginning. SG3 prefers to invest in the greater Philadelphia Region (Princeton to the north, Baltimore to the south and Pittsburgh to the west). We prefer to make initial investments at the formation or seed stage with a focus on providing financing through mature rounds of investment.

Website

http://sg3ventures.com
Industry

Financial Services
Type

Partnership
Headquarters

3711 Market Street Suite 800Philadelphia, PA 19104 United States
Company Size

1-10 employees

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Starting a Biotech the European Way

Posted in Investment in Technological Breakthrough, Pharmaceutical R&D Investment, Venture Capital, tagged #biotech, bioinvestment, biotech startup, Global Partnering & Biotech Investment, Venture capital on February 21, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Starting a Biotech the European Way

Author: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D.

A wonderful post by Tony Marcel in Nature Biotechnology highlights some of the structural differences in the way biotech startups are formed in Europe contrasted with bio-entrepreneurship as conducted in the United States. Tony Marcel is currently the CEO of FGene S.A. and gives a personal experience of the European biotech startup scene and highlights the differences, as he sees it, in the unique business development models occurring in Europe versus the US. This post will highlight features from the article.

US model of biotech is not easily transferable to how Europe does business
US model involves developing a specific technology platform then selling that tool, service or platform to pharma for R&D $ and royalties
European perspective is to build networks instead of platforms which can deliver capabilities or one product to pharma
The article discusses three weaknesses identified in the biotech world with respect to Europe and the US

Three ” weaknesses” identified which may affect decision to start a biotech in Europe include:

European academic scientists have trepidation making deals with big pharma
European scientists are not as eager as US counterparts to start a biotech
biotechs still are not as good as pharma in drug development so even their pipeline of “hits” are failing in clinical trials

The article aims to use these weaknesses to define a European way involving

defining management players and market niche early on
reducing the barriers to entry (i.e. legal)
establishing the relationships to increase viability

The full article can be found at the following link:

http://www.nature.com/bioent/2003/030101/full/nbt0299supp_9.html

An emerging European model for bioentrepreneurship

Tony Marcel

Tony Marcel is CEO of FGene S.A., 91, Avenue Kléber, 75116 Paris, France

e-mail: tonymftmcgene@compuserve.com.

The US model for biotechnology is not easily exportable to Europe, but an alternative European business model may be adaptable everywhere.

There is a widespread opinion that biotechnology companies worldwide need to follow business models initiated in the US. These models, generally speaking, are based on development of a specific technology platform. The prevailing wisdom suggests this technology can be sold as a tool or service to pharmaceutical companies or can be used to develop a lead compound that can then be sold to big pharma for R&D dollars and single-digit downstream royalties.

But my experience as a former academic medical researcher who has helped discover, develop, and market drugs for Hoechst, Laboratoires Roussel, Roussel-Uclaf, Rhône-Poulenc Sante, and Amgen has taught me that there is an appealing alternative to this model that may be more practical from the European perspective. Rather than building technologies, one can build networks that have the capability of delivering to big pharma the one product they cannot refuse: validated lead compounds for unmet medical needs.

Identifying a market niche

My background has taught me that an effective way to find solutions is to look at weaknesses perceived by the status quo, and then to develop a strategy to turn them into strengths. Biotechnology’s biggest weakness was its lack of products, in traditional pharmaceutical terms. Relatively few lead compounds have made their way through clinical trials and onto the market. So to separate your company from the crowd, my first conclusion is that it needs to be product-based. It should develop lead compounds that can be sold to big pharma, or take those compounds through clinical trials and to the market.

How do you accomplish this in Europe? I identified three weaknesses from a traditional biotechnology or pharmaceutical perspective that I felt could be developed into strengths. The first was that European scientists are much more risk averse than their American counterparts when it comes to setting up their own business. The legal, financial, and cultural infrastructure to take such a step is far more developed in the US than elsewhere.

The second was that European academic scientists tended to be mistrustful of big pharma’s intentions in licensing discussions. Taking the fruits of their research and developing it into a business is an uncharted area for most, and their unfamiliarity with this process made them cautious.

Finally, biotechnology startups everywhere, not just in Europe, are usually not very efficient in conducting pharmaceutical development. In general, they are discovery-focused companies that lack both the expertise and the contacts in these areas to efficiently manage this process.

These three weaknesses provide the basis for my product-based business plan. The fact that European scientists are not as ready to start companies as in the US makes Europe a source of world-class research not already tied up commercially. In addition, my experience in the pharmaceutical world has demonstrated that a commitment to building a relationship based on trust with scientists and their university licensing departments tremendously enhances the quality of these exchanges and, over time, provides remarkable access to a pipeline of innovative lead compounds.

Finally, the pharmaceutical industry’s move to outsource much of the development and clinical trials process has created a remarkable infrastructure for moving lead compounds through development. One only needed to know when this was appropriate and to have the money to commit to that project to realize a major portion of the development process.

The business model that results from uniting these strengths is a company dedicated not to a specific technology platform, but rather to the development of innovative compounds discovered and patented by academia. The company’s niche is to license in molecules at an early stage and demonstrate proof of principle, and take them through regulatory preclinicals, as well as phase I/II clinicals. At that point, the company licenses its products to big pharma. Profit is generated by the substantial risk-to-reward ratio between the cost of licensing in molecules and the outlicensing price to big pharma.

Management

Contrary to the way many US biotechnology companies are run, the management structure of such a company is not a one-person show. This strategy relies heavily on a supervisory board made up of representatives from European ministries and major European banks. It is also dependent on a scientific advisory board (SAB) with members from key European states. Unlike the boards of some biotechnology companies, the individuals selected are not merely figureheads. They must be committed to an operational role in which they are regularly consulted about the company’s plans.

The key to making this work is to maintain permanent links with academia, the source of new molecules, through publications, meetings, and also through SAB members. One also needs to develop comparable relationships in the pharmaceutical industry in order to keep abreast of licensing-in needs. Using this dual approach, a company will be able to identify discoveries relevant to a major pharmaceutical market before they are published. The company can then select candidates for licensing based on demonstrations of their potentially useful activity, the proof of pilot synthesis and purification capability, and sufficient intellectual property protection.

Given the academic scientist’s aversion to starting a business, where will this network of managers come from? In Europe, the merger and acquisition fever that has hit both the pharmaceutical and banking industries has created a large pool of experienced professionals, acquainted with science, marketing, and business. Some of these individuals will be at a point in their lives where setting up companies is an exciting alternative career.

The challenge for this new generation of European bioentrepreneurs will be to develop their ability to create a new level of cross-talk between inventors and developers. Their core responsibility will be much in keeping with their training: Build and nurture a portfolio of molecules at various stages of development.

Barriers to entry

If this model is so straightforward, why do pharmaceutical companies not eliminate the biotechnology middleman and reap the rewards directly? One of the three premises of this model is that a small biotech company is more able to concentrate on an academic alliance than a large pharmaceutical company. Biotechnology’s close identification with academia through the training of both its management and staff gives it a cultural advantage in assuming this role.

Historically, the model in which big pharma establishes a direct relationship with academia has never proven successful. For example, SmithKline and French invested much of its Tagamet earnings into developing academic alliances to fill its pipelines. Nonetheless, investing a substantial amount of money in these relationships over a significant period of time did not prevent this group from having to merge with Beecham. Nearly every working pharmaceutical executive today has a similar war story.

The reason it has failed for the past 20 years, and is likely to continue to fail for the next 20, is that it concentrates efforts in the hands of the most powerful pharmaceutical companies and key research institutions. The resulting bureaucracy is so overwhelming it not only alienates the scientific innovators, but creates a stifling atmosphere in which decisions simply cannot be made.

But old habits die hard, and this model has long been a tradition in Europe—particularly in France. Therefore, it is likely, if for no other reason than to reap the potential financial returns of such a model, that pharmaceutical companies will continue to make this model work.

However, the important role that biotechnology can play in this process is being recognized by some individuals now in positions of responsibility in pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, and government offices. These individuals are doing their best to support biotechnology’s role in the development of innovative new medicines.

Viability

If you have read this far, you are probably persuaded by the arguments, but may wonder, “If it is such a great business model, why hasn’t anyone done it before?” Well, they have. In 1995, FGene was founded in France as a company devoted to the development of biopharmaceutical products. The company was initiated by the willingness of the Paris-based Institut Pasteur, a major European academic institution, to license molecules to it. This relationship allowed the beginning of the process I have just described.

The resolve of the French government, key players in academia, the investment community, and the pharmaceutical industry to enhance the growth of biotechnology in France is an opportunity we have seized. We have tried to duplicate in Europe the remarkable links developed between biotechnology startups and academia in the US, and hope to create a viable business serving the needs of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies that are literally in our backyard.

In three years of existence, FGene already boasts five products in its active development portfolio: a recombinant protein for the treatment of traumatic spinal section; a peptide for the prevention and therapy of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular ischemia, such as coronary diseases; a selective IL2 receptor agonist for the treatment of cancer; a peptide active on kidney and bone for the treatment of bone and mineral balance disorders, such as osteoporosis; and a peptide for improving male pattern sexual arousal.

We are encouraged that we have made this much progress in such a short time. While this model is still not proven in terms of financial success, it provides a much stronger foundation for growing a biotechnology company than most biotechnology business plans currently in use because costs are directly related to the development of marketable products.

Conclusions

For budding European bioentrepreneurs, this model recommends itself for three reasons: First, it uses unexploited resources that are difficult to access through traditional biotechnology or pharmaceutical models. Second, it is based on pharmaceutical customers’ high-priority needs. And third, it provides a company with a burn rate that is in direct proportion to the realization of a marketable product.

This model has first taken hold in France because of a unique set of circumstances, but its applicability seems uthe commitment of a network of individuals to build a new kind of biotechnology company.

My vision is that companies formed will reinvigorate the European pharmaceutical industry. In the end, everyone wins. Academic science has a new route to receive fair payment for their innovations, biotechnology companies show a rapid timeline to profitability, making investors happy, and pharmaceutical companies fill their pipelines with truly innovative medicines. But the real winner in the end will be the consumer—the rapid translation of genomic products will lead to medicines that improve healthcare at an affordable price, in a much shorter time frame than previously possible.

source: http://www.nature.com/bioent/2003/030101/full/nbt0299supp_9.html

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AGTC (AGTC) , An adenoviral gene therapy startup, expands in Florida with help from $1 billion deal with Biogen

Posted in Genetics & Innovations in Treatment, Genome Biology, Investment in Technological Breakthrough, Medical Devices R&D Investment, tagged AAV, adenovirus, biotech startup, gene therapy, genetic diseases, Global Partnering & Biotech Investment, startup, Venture capital on February 17, 2016| Leave a Comment »

AGTC (AGTC) , An adenoviral gene therapy startup, expands in Florida with help from $1 billion deal with Biogen

Reporter: Stephen J. Williams, Ph.D.

from Biospace News

AGTC Sets Up Shop in Florida, New Facility to House 75 Employees
February 17, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (AGTC), a biotechnology company researching adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapies for the treatment of rare diseases, is expanding into the rapidly growing north central Florida biotech corridor.

The company, which was founded on technology developed at the University of Florida, is opening a combined use corporate office and laboratory facility in Alachua, Fla. AGTC’s portion of the new multi-tenant facility is expected to accommodate up to about 75 people and consists of approximately 20,000 square feet including state-of-the-art lab and office space as well as space for future expansion, the company announced this morning.

“The new facility will help us to accelerate our research and development efforts for novel AAV-based gene therapies for rare diseases and house critical corporate functions including finance, quality assurance and project management, while providing ample space as we continue to bring new talent to our team,” Sue Washer, president and chief executive officer of AGTC said in a statement.

AGTC’s lead product candidates focus on X-linked retinoschisis, achromatopsia and X-linked retinitis pigmentosa, which are inherited orphan diseases of the eye, caused by mutations in single genes that significantly affect visual function and currently lack effective medical treatments. Retinoschisis is a condition in which an area of the retina has separated into two layers. The part of the retina that is affected by retinoschisis will have suboptimal vision, according to the University of Michigan’s Kellogg Eye Center. Achromatopsia is a condition of the eye that is characterized by an absence (partial or total) of color vision. People with the complete form of achromatopsia are unable to perceive any colors and can only see black, white and shades of gray.

AGTC is also pursuing pre-clinical development of treatments for wet AMD using the company’s experience in ophthalmology to expand into disease indications with larger markets.

In August, AGTC’s research was bolstered by a $1 billion deal withBiogen (BIIB) to support the company’s gene-based therapies. As part of the deal, Biogen holds a license to AGTC’s XLRS and XLRP programs and an additional three licenses, BioSpace (DHX) reported in August.

David Day, assistant vice president & director of the Office of Technology Licensing at the University of Florida, touted the growth of the biotech sector in north central Florida.

“AGTC’s progress in developing novel treatments for rare diseases without adequate therapeutic options is a particularly good model for the entire biotechnology sector,” Day said in a statement.

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GlaxoSmithKline and Johnson & Johnson Team with VC Firm Medicxi to Launch $250Million Life Science Startup Fund

Posted in Pharmaceutical Industry Competitive Intelligence, Pharmaceutical R&D Investment, Venture Capital, tagged bioinvestment, biotech startup, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Life Sciences, Medicxi, startup, Venture capital on February 2, 2016| Leave a Comment »

From Biospace News: GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)-Backed VC Firm Medicxi Launches $250 Million Fund For Life Science Startups

Reporter: Stephen J. Williams, PhD

original article: http://www.biospace.com/News/glaxosmithkline-and-johnson-johnson-backed-vc-firm/407338/source=TopBreaking

Press release

Medicxi Ventures, Formerly Index Ventures Life Sciences, Launches as an Independent Venture Capital Firm and Announces Closing of a €210m Fund including GSK and Johnson & Johnson Innovation

LONDON, GENEVA and JERSEY, February 2, 2016 /PRNewswire/ —

Medicxi Ventures comprises all of the existing life sciences team, portfolio company investments and life sciences funds of Index Ventures
GSK and Johnson & Johnson Innovation expand their commitment to the asset-centric approach
Index Ventures technology practice remains unchanged

Medicxi Ventures, a new venture capital firm comprising all of the existing life sciences portfolio companies, funds and team from Index Ventures, today announces the close of Medicxi Ventures 1 (MV1), a new €210 million ($250 million) fund that will focus on early-stage life sciences investments. MV1 will predominantly invest in Europe and principally follow the “asset-centric” strategy pioneered by its partners at Index.

By investing in MV1, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc. (JJDC) have renewed and expanded their commitment to the asset-centric approach, following the prior investment in Index Life 6 (IL-6) alongside other financial investors.

Medicxi Ventures starts its operations as one of the largest independent European life sciences focused investment firms. The Company’s mission is to focus on strengthening R&D innovation by providing solutions to unmet medical needs. Collaboration with pharmaceutical companies will continue to be a key strategy helping the firm to deliver on this mission.

Medicxi Ventures will be managed by four General Partners, Francesco De Rubertis, David Grainger, Kevin Johnson and Michèle Ollier, all of whom previously led the life sciences practice of Index Ventures. The four partners will form the executive management of the new firm.

Francesco De Rubertis, General Partner of Medicxi Ventures, said: “We are excited to take this next step in our evolution as a life sciences focused investment firm. A high percentage of the drugs approved every year by the FDA were discovered in European academic labs. By working in close partnership with academia, biotech and the pharmaceutical industry, we are committed to translating this high quality science in Europe into effective new medicines.”

He added: “It has been a privilege working with Neil Rimer, Giuseppe Zocco and the other tech partners at Index Ventures for the last 20 years and we have benefitted from their expertise in investing in and building high growth entrepreneurial companies.”

Dr Moncef Slaoui, Chairman Global Vaccines and GSK‘s representative on Medicxi‘s Scientific Advisory Board, commented on the announcement: “We are delighted to support the Medicxi team and this early stage investment fund. We believe in the potential to create an exciting pipeline of new medicine candidates by collaborating and investing with an asset-centric model. The team at Medicxi has a proven track record in partnering with world-class entrepreneurs and scientists to translate disruptive science from academia and industry into new medicines with demonstrable patient benefits.”

Dr Richard Mason, Head, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, London, commented: “Johnson & Johnson Innovation is focused on enabling and advancing all stages of science and technology across the world’s most robust innovation ecosystems. We are optimistic that applying the asset-centric investment model of Medicxi across Europe and beyond will uncover the new and highly differentiated science and technology that is needed to turn early stage research into viable products and patient solutions. We are delighted to work closely with the Medicxi team to help increase the productivity and likelihood of success for the life sciences innovation community throughout the region. ”

The Scientific Advisory Board of the new fund will include some of the top R&D and business development executives from the two pharmaceutical companies as well as Medicxi-appointed executives. As in IL-6, the two pharmaceutical companies have not received any specific rights to the portfolio companies.

Neil Rimer, co-founder of Index Ventures, said: “The creation of Medicxi Ventures as a new entity is a natural evolution given that Index’ life sciences team has been operating autonomously within the firm for several years. Whilst Index and Medicxi will operate independently, we retain close ties and look forward to continuing to share ideas and expertise.”

Notes for Editors

About Medicxi Ventures

Medicxi Ventures is based in London, Geneva and Jersey. It comprises all of the legacy portfolio companies, funds and the life sciences team of Index Ventures, and a new €210 million fund (MV1) that will focus on early-stage investments in life sciences. The Company’s mission is to invest and collaborate along the full healthcare continuum focusing on drug discovery and development and pharmaceutical innovation. Leading healthcare companies, GSK and Johnson & Johnson Innovation-JJDC are investors in Medicxi Ventures’ funds.

Medicxi Ventures’ team has been investing in life sciences for over 20 years and has backed many successful companies, including Genmab (Nasdaq Copenhagen: GEN), PanGenetics (sold to AbbVie), Molecular Partners (SWX: MOLN), XO1 (sold to Janssen) Egalet (EGLT), Minerva Neurosciences (NERV) and Versartis (VSAR).

Please see http://www.medicxiventures.com for more information.

About the Medicxi Ventures Executive Team

Francesco De Rubertis joined Index in 1997 to lead the firm’s life sciences activity and has been involved with and overseen all of the investments that Index has made in life sciences

David Grainger joined Index in 2012. Prior to this, David led an internationally recognised research group in Cambridge University’s Department of Medicine, where he published more than 80 first author papers in leading journals including Nature, Science and Nature Medicine. He is an inventor on more than 150 patents and patent applications.

Kevin Johnson has been working with Index since 2003. He focuses on life sciences, especially drug development companies and was part of the management team that floated Cambridge Antibody Technology on the London Stock Exchange. Two of his products, Humira (Abbott Pharmaceutical) and Benlysta (Human Genome Sciences, GSK), are now on the market.

Michèle Ollier joined Index in 2006. She has spent more than 15 years in several development and marketing positions at Sanofi International, Bristol-Myers Squibb, RPR/Gencell/Aventis international and Serono International.

For further information, please contact:

Francesco De Rubertis
General Partner, Medicxi Ventures
francesco@medicxiventures.com
+44(0)207-154-2020

Katja Stout, Sylvie Berrebi
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
katja.stout@citigatedr.co.uk
Sylvie.berrebi@citigatedr.co.uk
+44(0)207-638-9571

Bill Douglass
Gotham Communications LLC
bill@gothamcomm.com
+1(646)504-0890