US-headquartered biotechnology company Proclara Biosciences closed a $47m series E round yesterday backed by Merieux Developpement, the strategic investment arm of healthcare technology provider Institut Mérieux.
The round, which included undisclosed exiting investors, was announced as Proclara changed its name from NeuroPhage Pharmaceuticals. It increased the company’s overall funding to more than $110m.
Proclara is developing treatments for diseases caused by protein misfolding, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
The series E financing will support a phase 1b clinical trial for its lead product candidate, an Alzheimer’s treatment called NPT088, which began recently. Proclara also plans to spend money advancing preclinical studies on other molecules.
Franz Hefti, president and CEO of Proclara, said: “We are very pleased by the continued support of our investors, which speaks to the strength of our science and the tremendous potential for our therapies to transform the treatment landscape for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.
“Together with our name change, this important corporate milestone marks our continued progress towards bringing to market a new class of medicines to address the urgent needs of patients suffering from debilitating protein misfolding diseases.”
NeuroPhage raised $7m in series A funding from Nanga Investments and undisclosed others in 2008 before Merieux Developpement and pharmaceutical company Shire funded its series B, C and D rounds between 2012 and January 2015.