Gesynta Pharma has successfully raised SEK 190 million in one of the largest private biotech placements of the year in the Nordics.
The placement was led by European life science fund manager Hadean Ventures, joined by existing investor Industrifonden and private funds.
“We believe mPGES-1 is an exciting, first-in-class target in systemic sclerosis and other diseases with significant unmet needs in which there is coincidence of inflammation and vasoconstriction. As such we are delighted that GS-248 has successfully completed Phase 1 studies and is ready for Phase IIa development in patients. Through our diligence we have also been hugely impressed by the experienced team at Gesynta with whom we look forward to working as we take this asset and the rest of the pipeline forward,” says Roger Franklin of Hadean Ventures, who will join Gesynta’s board.
A multi-centre Phase IIa study in Q4, 2020
The investment enables Gesynta to fund continued development of lead candidate GS-248 in systemic sclerosis patients. Following a successful Phase I study recently reported at EULAR2020, this inhibitor of microsomal prostaglandin E synthase-1 (mPGES-1) is now scheduled to enter a multi-centre Phase IIa study in Q4, 2020.
GS-248 provides both anti-inflammatory and vasodilatory effects and has the potential to become a new efficacious treatment for the microvascular dysfunction, which leads to both pain and ulcerations due to poor blood flow in small vessels, that systemic sclerosis patients suffer from.
“The positive results from our Phase I study showing strong effects of GS-248 on biomarkers of inflammation and vascular protection in humans led us to initiate this new funding round. The response from both existing and new investors has been extremely positive and we can now quickly move forward towards the next critical milestone for GS-248 – the initiation of a proof-of-concept trial in systemic sclerosis patients,” says Patric Stenberg, CEO of Gesynta Pharma.
Photo of the Gesynta Pharma team
