Trefoil Therapeutics, a San Diego, CA-based private biotechnology company, raised $28m in Series A financing.
The round was led by Bios Partners and Access Biotechnology, with participation from existing investors Hatteras Venture Partners, Aju IB Investment, Correlation Ventures, ExSight Ventures and InFocus Capital Partners. In conjunction with the funding, Stella M. Robertson, Ph.D., co-founder of Bios Partners, and a former vice president in Research & Development at Alcon Laboratories, will join Trefoil’s Board of Directors.
The company is developing novel engineered fibroblast growth factor-1 proteins (eFGF-1) as a regenerative pharmacologic therapy to treat serious corneal endothelial diseases and epithelial disorders.
Led by David Eveleth, Ph.D., Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Trefoil is a private biotechnology company focused on leveraging its engineered fibroblast growth factor-1 protein (eFGF-1) technology platform to develop first-in-class pharmacologic treatments for serious corneal endothelial diseases and epithelial disorders. Its lead product candidate is TTHX1114, an engineered form of FGF-1 designed to reverse vision loss by stimulating cell proliferation and migration. The technology underlying Trefoil’s platform was developed by co-founder Michael Blaber, Ph.D., and is licensed from Florida State University.
This funding supports the completion of a Phase 2a proof-of-concept study in corneal endothelial dystrophy, including Fuchs dystrophy, a disease which leads to the deterioration of the endothelial layer on the back surface of the cornea. Trefoil anticipates filing an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in early 2020 and initiating the clinical trial soon thereafter.
The funding also enables the company to move forward with IND-enabling studies of a topical formulation of TTHX1114 for the treatment of ulcerative conditions of the cornea, with a planned submission of a second IND for corneal epithelial conditions in 2021.
FinSMEs
16/07/2019