Polyneuron successfully closed CHF 3.1 million in financing
22.05.2018
2015 Venture Kick stage 3 winner completed a CHF 3.1 million in seed financing, following the receipt of a second tranche. The company that conceives a new class of biodegradable glycopolymer treatments for autoimmune diseases will use the proceeds to advance its lead “Antibody-Catch™” program to the clinic. Ruben Herrendorff, Polyneuron Pharmaceuticals CEO and co-founder, shares with us his enthusiasm and answers our questions.
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What does it mean for your company and how did you prepare the funding round with investors?
The financing was led by EVA Basel and included the Zürcher Kantonalbank and private investors. The proceeds will be used to advance our lead asset, PN-1007, to clinical development for the treatment of the rare nervous system disease, anti-MAG neuropathy, and advance additional applications of our Antibody-Catch™ technology platform. This technology enables the chemical design of injectable, biodegradable glycopolymers to eliminate autoimmune disease-causing autoantibodies, while leaving the immune system intact.
Since the initial seed financing tranche, we have met several key milestones, such as delivering preclinical proof of principle with PN-1007, concluding a key licensing agreement with the University of Basel and expanding the team, including the appointments of Gerhard Müller, Ph.D., as Chairman and Michael Wacker, Ph.D., as Chief Business Officer. We believe there is great potential in our approach to treating devastating autoimmune diseases of the nervous system where the pathological role of anti-carbohydrate autoantibodies is well established and will shortly begin the next round of fundraising to advance key assets to clinical proof of principle.
What is the Antibody-Catch platform and what makes it unique?
Antibody-Catch™ is a platform technology developed by Polyneuron Pharmaceuticals AG to facilitate the rational design of drugs that bind and eliminate disease-causing autoantibodies in autoimmune diseases. The drug candidates are chemically produced, biodegradable, high-molecular weight glycopolymers that offer multiple epitope-mimics to the autoantibodies. After injection, the drug serves as a decoy for the autoantibody, which then is sequestered and eliminated from the body. This highly specific treatment approach is fundamentally new and could potentially enable treatment options for previously incurable diseases. Polyneuron currently focuses on autoimmune diseases which involve autoantibodies against carbohydrate epitopes.
What inspired you to first start working on autoimmune diseases and what was your first big break?
The birth hour or initial inspiration for Polyneuron’s technology was basically back in 2010 and 2011 when I was a Master student in the laboratory of Prof. Beat Ernst. I was working on potential therapeutic molecules for the treatment of an autoimmune disorder of the nervous system (called anti-MAG neuropathy). At the end of this work, we had an interesting molecule, but more investigation needed to be carried out. After a few additional months of hard work, I jumped for joy in the lab: We had a very efficacious molecule that had the potential to treat this autoimmune disorder. My professor and I knew that it was an important discovery. We realized early on that the same approach of designing therapeutic molecules can be applied to other autoimmune disorders of the nervous system and potentially to many other autoimmune diseases. This is what we mean by technology platform.
In 2015, you won the Venture Kick Finale in 2015, what did the experience bring to you?
The Venture Kick program helped us to shape and refine our business case, which allowed us to attract first investors. The winning of the Venture Kick Finale was for sure an important external validation of the business case and also provided us with media coverage, both is key when it comes to fundraising.
The financing was led by EVA Basel and included the Zürcher Kantonalbank and private investors. The proceeds will be used to advance our lead asset, PN-1007, to clinical development for the treatment of the rare nervous system disease, anti-MAG neuropathy, and advance additional applications of our Antibody-Catch™ technology platform. This technology enables the chemical design of injectable, biodegradable glycopolymers to eliminate autoimmune disease-causing autoantibodies, while leaving the immune system intact.
Since the initial seed financing tranche, we have met several key milestones, such as delivering preclinical proof of principle with PN-1007, concluding a key licensing agreement with the University of Basel and expanding the team, including the appointments of Gerhard Müller, Ph.D., as Chairman and Michael Wacker, Ph.D., as Chief Business Officer. We believe there is great potential in our approach to treating devastating autoimmune diseases of the nervous system where the pathological role of anti-carbohydrate autoantibodies is well established and will shortly begin the next round of fundraising to advance key assets to clinical proof of principle.
What is the Antibody-Catch platform and what makes it unique?
Antibody-Catch™ is a platform technology developed by Polyneuron Pharmaceuticals AG to facilitate the rational design of drugs that bind and eliminate disease-causing autoantibodies in autoimmune diseases. The drug candidates are chemically produced, biodegradable, high-molecular weight glycopolymers that offer multiple epitope-mimics to the autoantibodies. After injection, the drug serves as a decoy for the autoantibody, which then is sequestered and eliminated from the body. This highly specific treatment approach is fundamentally new and could potentially enable treatment options for previously incurable diseases. Polyneuron currently focuses on autoimmune diseases which involve autoantibodies against carbohydrate epitopes.
What inspired you to first start working on autoimmune diseases and what was your first big break?
The birth hour or initial inspiration for Polyneuron’s technology was basically back in 2010 and 2011 when I was a Master student in the laboratory of Prof. Beat Ernst. I was working on potential therapeutic molecules for the treatment of an autoimmune disorder of the nervous system (called anti-MAG neuropathy). At the end of this work, we had an interesting molecule, but more investigation needed to be carried out. After a few additional months of hard work, I jumped for joy in the lab: We had a very efficacious molecule that had the potential to treat this autoimmune disorder. My professor and I knew that it was an important discovery. We realized early on that the same approach of designing therapeutic molecules can be applied to other autoimmune disorders of the nervous system and potentially to many other autoimmune diseases. This is what we mean by technology platform.
In 2015, you won the Venture Kick Finale in 2015, what did the experience bring to you?
The Venture Kick program helped us to shape and refine our business case, which allowed us to attract first investors. The winning of the Venture Kick Finale was for sure an important external validation of the business case and also provided us with media coverage, both is key when it comes to fundraising.