Auspex Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a La Jolla, CA-based clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel medicines for the treatment of orphan diseases, completed two separate financing totalling $35m.
They included a $20m Series E equity funding and a $15m four-year venture loan from Oxford Finance LLC.
The equity round was led by Deerfield Management Company with participation from existing investors Thomas, McNerney and Partners, CMEA Capital, Panorama Capital, BioMed Ventures and Costa Verde Capital.
The company will use the funds to advance SD-809, its lead program, in Phase 3 clinical development for the treatment of chorea associated with Huntington’s disease.
Led by Pratik Shah, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, Auspex focuses on the development and commercialization of novel medicines for the treatment of orphan diseases. Its pipeline includes product candidates to address unmet medical needs in hyperkinetic movement disorders, such as chorea associated with Huntington’s disease, tardive dyskinesia and Tourette syndrome, as well as other orphan indications.
In addition to the funding, Gerald Proehl, former President and CEO of Santarus, Inc., joined the company’s Board of Directors. Mr. Proehl will serve on the Board in place of David Collier.
FinSMEs