Thesan Pharmaceuticals, a US-based biotechnology company focused on the treatment of dermatological conditions, including acne and atopic dermatitis, has raised $49m series B financing led by current investor Novo Ventures, the venture capital unit within the Novo group of life sciences companies owned by Denmark-based Novo Nordisk Foundation, with the participation of life sciences venture capital firm SV Life Sciences, Lundbeckfond Ventures, a life sciences venture fund owned by Denmark-based The Lundbeck Foundation, and Novartis Venture Funds, the corporate venturing funds of Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company Novartis.
Gordon Foulkes, Thesan’s CEO, said: “Our focus remains the development of new chemical entities with novel mechanisms of action. We are very pleased with the deep financial backing provided by four top tier venture funds, which puts us in an unparalleled position as a biopharma to develop new drugs in this area.”
“We believe Thesan offers a unique opportunity for developing completely new classes of dermatological agents, which can be moved rapidly into clinical development,” said Peter Bisgaard, partner at Novo Ventures (US) Inc. “Dermatology has been dominated in the last 20 years by reformulated or repurposed products. We see Thesan as leading the charge to bring novel medicines to patients.”
“This is our first investment in the dermatology area and we are excited by the novelty of the programs, the seasoned management and the strong syndicate,” said Mette Kirstine Agger, managing partner of Lundbeckfond Ventures.