Allegro Ophthalmics, a US-based eye disease treatment developer backed by pharmaceutical company Hanmi Pharmaceutical, closed a $10.7m financing round today, securing the capital from undisclosed investors.
Founded in 2011, Allegro is working on drug treatments for vitreoretinal diseases, which affect the vitreous and retina parts of the eye. Its lead candidate, a peptide therapy called Luminate, targets integrin receptors responsible for creating new, aberrant blood vessels, and for cell signalling and regulation.
South Korea-based Hanmi provided $20m of equity funding for Allegro at the start of 2015 as part of a Korea and China licensing deal for Luminate, which is currently in phase 2 clinical trials.
Vicken Karageozian, president and chief medical officer of Allegro Ophthalmics, said today: “The additional capital positions us well to complete multiple phase 2 clinical trials and prepare for phase 3 studies.
“This financing validates the potential for Luminate to be a valuable treatment option for patients with sight-threatening retinal diseases.”