Participated · Equity · Feb 2018

Rani Therapeutics is a San Jose, CA–based company developing The RaniPill™, a pill intended to replace injectable drug delivery for patients with chronic diseases. The company is led by founder and CEO Mir Imran and its research and technology originated at InCube Labs. Rani raised $53M in this round and said the funds will be used to invest in manufacturing in preparation for human clinical trials. To support the move to clinical testing it has hired Wilfredo Ortiz to lead day-to-day manufacturing operations and engaged Ray Diradoorian, former global head of manufacturing for Allergan, as a consultant. Rani is also working with a manufacturing automation company to develop the aseptic manufacturing line needed for human testing. The company reported the round brought total funding to $142M. Rani Therapeutics is a San Jose–based developer of technology to convert injectable drugs into oral pills and needle-free delivery systems for chronic disease therapies. The company raised $39M in a Series D round, bringing total funding to more than $100M. Investors in the round include GV (Google Ventures), Novartis, AstraZeneca, Cathay Ventures, Buttonwood, Crystal Horizon Investments, Pinemount Investments, the Pacific Venture Opportunity Fund, and Bossa Nova Investments. Rani plans to use the funds to accelerate clinical development of its platform, scale up manufacturing operations, and support human studies planned to start in 2018. It has partnerships with Novartis and AstraZeneca and is also testing additional biologics internally. Led by Chairman & CEO Mir Imran, Rani holds an IP portfolio with more than 100 patents, including 42 issued or allowed. Rani Therapeutics is developing a platform to enable oral delivery of injectable drugs including TNF-alpha inhibitors, interleukin antibodies, basal insulin and GLP-1. The company was founded in 2012 as a spinout of InCube Labs and is led by Chairman & CEO Mir Imran. Rani has entered strategic collaborations with Novartis and AstraZeneca/MedImmune to test its platform with selected drugs. The company intends to use its latest funding to expand the team, add new facilities and scale up manufacturing. Recently Rani hired Robert Gaffney as VP of Operations to lead expansion efforts. Rani is based in San Jose, CA. Rani Therapeutics is a San Jose, CA–based company that has developed a novel approach for the oral delivery of peptides, proteins and therapeutic antibodies. Led by Chairman & CEO Mir Imran, the company focuses on a route of administration intended to enable large biologics to be delivered into the bloodstream. Rani recently announced a collaboration with Novartis to run feasibility studies on delivering selected Novartis proprietary biologics using its platform. The company closed a Series C round of funding for an undisclosed amount and plans to use the proceeds to de‑risk the platform. Rani also intends to build the manufacturing infrastructure required for clinical trials and beyond. Rani Therapeutics is developing a platform to convert injectable drugs into oral pills. Its technology targets large drug molecules that currently require injection, including peptides, proteins, antibodies, RNAi therapies and select vaccines. The company specifically aims to enable oral delivery of drugs such as TNF-alpha inhibitors (e.g., adalimumab and etanercept) and basal insulin. It closed a Series B funding round of an undisclosed amount led by Google Ventures with participation from InCube Ventures and VentureHealth. Rani said it will use the proceeds to further develop its oral delivery approach. The company is led by chairman and CEO Mir Imran and is based in San Jose, California.

Participated · Series C · Nov 2014

Promethera develops cell-based therapies and complementary biologics to reduce the need for liver transplantation, with lead programs derived from its patented HepaStem platform. Its lead product candidate, HepaStem, consists of expanded liver stem cells manufactured under cGMP and is being evaluated in a phase 2a trial in ACLF with safety and efficacy results presented at EASL 2019. The company is preparing to initiate a late-stage clinical trial in NASH, planned to start in Europe and expand to the US and Asia. Promethera also advances H2Stem and antibody programs such as the anti-TNF-R1 antibody Atrosimab to diversify its pipeline. The company operates internationally with facilities in Mont-Saint-Guibert (Belgium), Durham (NC, USA), Tokyo (Japan) and Basel (Switzerland). The organization is scaling manufacturing and advancing preclinical work while progressing multiple clinical programs. Promethera Biosciences is a global innovator in cell-based medicines focused on severe liver diseases. Its lead clinical program is derived from the company’s patented HepaStem cell technology platform, which the company says has immune-modulatory and anti-fibrotic properties. In addition to cell-based therapies, Promethera develops antibody technologies to complement and diversify its therapeutic options. The company operates R&D and GMP facilities in Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium, and Durham, North Carolina, USA. It recently acquired Baliopharm AG, adding an antibody candidate that specifically binds TNF-R1 to its pipeline. Promethera plans to use new funding to accelerate and broaden clinical development in indications with significant unmet need, including acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), NASH and fibrosis. Promethera Biosciences is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on cell therapy and regenerative medicine for inborn and acquired liver diseases. It develops products using allogeneic progenitor cells, stem cells and mature hepatocytes harvested from non-transplantable healthy human livers (HHALPC, HHLivC) and has three cell products: HepaStem, H2Stem, and Heparesc. The pipeline targets both orphan indications (urea cycle disorders, α1‑antitrypsin deficiency, hemophilia) and larger indications such as acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), fibrosis and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Promethera plans to expand its development focus to these larger indications and accelerate clinical development toward the clinic. Headquartered in Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium, Promethera was founded in 2009 as a spin-off of Université catholique de Louvain and maintains a U.S. operation with a GMP manufacturing facility in Durham, North Carolina. The company raised EUR 10 million in a Series C-extension to fund these initiatives and support expansion into Asian markets. Promethera Biosciences develops Promethera® HepaStem, a cell-based therapy for in-born errors of metabolism and acquired liver diseases, and Promethera® H2Screen and H3Screen, non-therapeutic in vitro products based on a patented liver progenitor cell type. The company was founded in 2009 as a spin-off of the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) and is led by CEO Eric Halioua. It is clinical-stage and intends to use recent funding to advance the clinical development of HepaStem and a collaborative program with EMD-Millipore. The platform is based on cells isolated from healthy adult human livers. Promethera has 44 employees. Promethera Biosciences develops and commercializes allogeneic progenitor-cell products to treat liver diseases and offers liver cell models for the pharmaceutical industry. Its lead products include Promethera® HepaStem, a cell therapy for severe liver diseases in children and adults, and Promethera® HepaScreen, a cell model that mimics human liver metabolism and detoxification for drug testing. The company was founded in 2009 as a spin-off of the Université Catholique de Louvain and is led by CEO Eric Halioua. Promethera is based in Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium and currently employs 40 people. In March 2012 it raised €23.6m in a Series B composed of a €17m capital increase and a €6.6m loan from the Walloon Region. New strategic and financial backers in the round include Boehringer Ingelheim, Shire, Mitsui Global Investment, ATMI and SambrInvest, joining earlier Series A investors.

Participated · Equity · May 2013

Proclara Biosciences (formerly NeuroPhage Pharmaceuticals) is a clinical‑stage biotech developing therapies based on its proprietary General Amyloid Interaction Motif (GAIM) platform, which can target multiple toxic misfolded proteins. Its lead candidate, NPT088, is in a Phase 1b clinical trial for Alzheimer’s disease. The company says GAIM enables simultaneous targeting of multiple misfolded proteins, enabling programs across neurodegenerative diseases (including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s) and several rare systemic amyloidoses. The recent financing will support further clinical development of NPT088 and preclinical advancement of additional molecules toward the clinic. Proclara has transitioned to a clinical‑stage company and changed its name to reflect that evolution. The company is based in Cambridge, Mass. NeuroPhage leverages novel and proprietary GAIM (General Amyloid Interaction Motif) technology to develop therapies that target multiple types of misfolded proteins. Its lead drug candidate, NPT088, is designed to simultaneously target misfolded proteins implicated in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and systemic amyloidoses. The company intends to advance NPT088 into clinical studies in Alzheimer’s disease by the end of 2015 and to progress other innovative compounds for diseases of protein misfolding. NeuroPhage is led by CEO Jonathan Solomon and President and COO Franz Hefti. Financially, the company closed a $10.0M extension of its Series D private equity financing, bringing the total Series D to $27.0M; the extension was funded by new investors. NeuroPhage Pharmaceuticals develops fusion‑protein drug candidates to treat a range of neurodegenerative diseases. Its lead candidate, NPT088, is designed to target multiple misfolded protein deposits and has potential application in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s and other rare diseases. The company’s approach is built on its GAIM (General Amyloid Interaction Motif) technology platform, which recognizes both early and aggregated forms of multiple misfolded proteins and enables simultaneous targeting of different disease‑related protein deposits. NeuroPhage is led by President and CEO Jonathan Solomon. The company completed a $17M Series D financing to advance NPT088 and potential next‑generation compounds toward clinical trials. The financing reflects the company’s near‑term focus on moving its lead program into clinical development. NeuroPhage Pharmaceuticals develops therapies targeting protein misfolding in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Its platform aims to produce broadly acting agents that reduce multiple pathogenic protein aggregates in the brain. The company is advancing a pipeline of drug candidates, including lead compound NPT002. NeuroPhage plans to use recent proceeds to support ongoing pre-IND studies for NPT002 and to advance fusion proteins for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases. The company raised equity financing to fund these development activities. NeuroPhage was founded in 2007 and is led by President and CEO Jonathan Solomon. NeuroPhage Pharmaceuticals develops a protein-disaggregation platform that targets misfolded proteins for the treatment and prevention of neurodegenerative diseases. The company is advancing a novel therapeutic in development for Alzheimer’s disease and has received Michael J. Fox Foundation funding for Parkinson’s disease research. Proceeds from its latest financing will be used to advance the Alzheimer’s program. Since inception the company has raised $28.6m in equity capital. NeuroPhage was founded in 2007 by Jonathan Solomon, MBA, and is based in Cambridge, MA.

Participated · Series B · Dec 2012

Naurex is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in Evanston, Ill., that has built a platform to discover drugs that enhance synaptic plasticity via selective modulation of the NMDA receptor. Its lead molecule, GLYX-13, has demonstrated rapid, robust and sustained antidepressant effects in multiple Phase 2 studies and was well-tolerated in clinical proof-of-concept studies. Naurex is proceeding with a GLYX-13 Phase 3 program after completing an end-of-Phase 2 meeting with the FDA and expects Phase 3 to begin in 2015. The company’s next-generation oral candidate, NRX-1074, is in Phase 2 for major depressive disorder and has shown promising preclinical efficacy and early clinical tolerability. Naurex applies its NMDA-focused platform to generate a pipeline of subtype-selective modulators aimed at a range of CNS indications, including depression, traumatic brain injury and neuropathic pain. The company planned to use financing proceeds to support ongoing clinical development of GLYX-13, NRX-1074 and related development activities across its pipeline. Naurex is a clinical-stage company based in Evanston, Illinois, developing drugs that modulate the NMDA receptor for psychiatry and neurology. Its lead program is GLYX-13, an NMDA receptor modulator in development for the treatment of depression. The company is also advancing its second-generation compound NRX-1074 into Phase I and II clinical trials in depression. Naurex plans to further develop its second- and third-generation programs for other CNS disorders. Leadership includes CEO Derek A. Small and executive chairman Bill Gantz, and the company’s programs are based on work by founder Dr. Joseph R. Moskal and colleagues at Northwestern University. Financially, Naurex completed a $38M Series B financing to fund these development programs. Naurex, based in Evanston, IL, is a clinical-stage company focused on therapeutics for psychiatry and neurology. Its lead compound is GLYX-13, a glycine-site functional partial agonist (GFPA) selective modulator of the NMDA receptor. GLYX-13 showed promising antidepressant activity and excellent safety in preclinical studies, results that were confirmed in a Phase I clinical trial. The company plans a Phase II trial targeting patients not achieving an adequate response to current antidepressants. Naurex is also advancing a second-generation GFPA program with multiple molecules showing preclinical proof of concept. The company is led by CEO Derek A. Small and has made recent board appointments including Wilbur (Bill) Gantz as chairman, with Terry Gould and Kenneth Widder joining the board.

Participated · Series A · Dec 2012

ArmaGen Technologies develops a platform to re-engineer recombinant proteins for blood–brain barrier penetration to treat diseases of the brain and spinal cord. The company is initially focusing on orphan CNS diseases with lead biopharmaceutical programs for Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) Type I (Hurler’s syndrome) and MPS Type II (Hunter’s disease). ArmaGen was formed in 2004 by William M. Pardridge, MD, who serves as Chief Scientific Officer, and is based in Santa Monica, CA. The company has raised $17M in Series A financing. The capital is intended to support expansion of existing operations and the clinical development of its biopharmaceuticals.