AURORA, Colo.– Cerebral Therapeutics, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company pioneering therapies for neurological diseases, announced today $40 million in Series C funding led by Lynx1 Capital Management with participation from existing investors RA Capital Management, Perceptive Advisors, Vivo Capital LLC, and Granite Point Capital Management L.P. In conjunction with the financing round, Weston Nichols, Ph.D., Managing Partner of Lynx1 Capital Management and Tim Scannell, former President and COO of Stryker, will join the Board of Directors.
The Company plans to use Series C proceeds to complete an international Phase 2 double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial of its proprietary investigational drug (CT-010) for the treatment of uncontrolled seizures in patients with medically refractory epilepsy, and to support Phase 3 readiness. Cerebral Therapeutics uses a proprietary implanted infusion system to deliver continuous doses of CT-010 intracerebroventricularly (ICV). This novel drug-device combination treatment is intended to increase targeted drug brain exposure thereby maximizing efficacy, reducing systemic drug exposure, and improving safety while enhancing therapy adherence.
“We are pleased to announce completion of our Series C financing, enabling the company to further develop CT-010 for the treatment of refractory epilepsy, and to advance our CNS drug pipeline,” said Dan Abrams, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Cerebral Therapeutics. “Direct brain administration of our proprietary anti-seizure therapeutic has the potential to dramatically reduce seizure burden and to positively impact the lives of patients with refractory epilepsy. Our approach to crossing the blood-brain barrier may unlock the potential of many other promising CNS therapeutics.”
“The Cerebral Therapeutics team is pursuing a direct-to-brain approach to drug delivery that addresses the key disadvantages of oral anti-seizure medications and could prove to be a key enabling technology for delivery of CNS-targeted therapeutics across several modalities,” said Weston Nichols, Ph.D., Managing Partner at Lynx1 Capital Management. “We feel privileged to support this team as they work toward bringing better therapeutic options to patients living with serious CNS disorders.”
The Company will also use Series C proceeds to advance its ICV therapies pipeline including internal programs and collaborations with leading biopharmaceutical companies. Cerebral’s proprietary approach is suitable for a broad portfolio of product candidates including small molecules, oligonucleotides, antibodies, and enzyme therapies and incorporates a rigorously applied biomarker strategy.
