Pharmaceutical producer Gilead Sciences, insurance firm Orient Life and care provider Partners Healthcare all took part in a $55m series B round for US-based slow-release drug developer Lyndra Therapeutics on Tuesday.
Philanthropic organisation Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hopu Investments, Invus Opportunities, GF Securities, Polaris Partners, Quark Venture, Yonghua Capital, Healthlink Capital and Suffolk Equity also contributed to the funding.
Founded in 2015, Lyndra is developing a long-lasting capsule that will deliver steady amounts of one or more medicines whilst in the patient’s stomach. It is expected to deliver drug quantities for seven days or more with the aim of avoiding the requirement for patients to take daily medication.
The series B investment will be used to fund phase 2 clinical trials of a long-acting schizophrenia pill which are expected to start in 2020. Capital will also go to expanding the company’s phase 1 pipeline and accelerating its manufacturing capabilities.
Amy Schulman, Lyndra’s co-founder and chief executive, said: “The diversity and calibre of our investors, including those who joined this round, speaks to the importance of addressing unmet therapeutic need.
“I am proud of the speed with which the Lyndra team has moved from demonstrating feasibility to the clinic, and now we are well positioned to initiate additional phase 1 clinical trials and continue our progress toward phase 2 clinical trials.”
Lyndra had previously closed a $23m series A round in April 2017 led by Polaris Partners and backed by Partners Healthcare, GF Securities, Quark Venture, Yonghua Capital, Healthlink and Suffolk Equity.