PEP-Therapy raises €1.2 M to advance its therapeutic peptides
The company continues the development of its portfolio of drug candidatesand of their companion biomarkers in oncology
Paris, November 16, 2017 – PEP-Therapy, a biotechnology company which develops innovative peptides as targeted therapies, has achieved a second fundraising of €1.2 million. This investment, made by the Quadrivium 1 seed fund and Dr Bernard Majoie, and based on the results obtained so far, will enable PEP-Therapy to continue the development of its products portfolio, especially to undertake the regulatory development of PEP-010 associated with its biomarker to foresee the efficacy of the treatment.
These funds were provided by the Quadrivium 1 seed fund managed by Seventure Partners, supplemented by a personal investment from Dr Bernard Majoie, former Chairman and CEO of Laboratoires Fournier and Founding Chairman of Fondation Fournier-Majoie pour l’innovation. This fundraising will notably finance the preclinical regulatory development of the PEP-010 drug candidate, and the preparation of the phase 1 clinical trial, preliminary to a first-in-human administration planned for late 2018.
Antoine Prestat, CEO and co-founder of PEP-Therapy said: “This commitment of the Quadrivium 1 seed fund and of Dr Bernard Majoie shows their renewed confidence in the potential of the company, the quality and the management of the work accomplished so far. We are thankful to them. This new step moves PEP-Therapy closer to the clinic”.
PEP-010 is a Cell Penetrating & Interfering Peptide (CP&IP). It penetrates cells and specifically blocks the interaction between caspase-9 and PP2A proteins, thus inhibiting key pathological mechanisms. In animal models engrafted with primary human tumors, PEP-010 inhibits the tumor growth, without toxicity, even at high dose. PEP-Therapy targets first the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer, before extending its clinical applications to other indications in oncology.
“PEP-Therapy has been able to face challenges to turn the result of ten years of research into a real drug candidate. Now the company holds all the cards needed to start the regulatory toxicity study of PEP-010” comments Dr Bernard Majoie.
PEP-010 is the most advanced product in PEP-Therapy’s portfolio. In addition, the company is developing a drug candidate for the treatment of uveal melanoma, a rare and very aggressive cancer of the eye, as well as other products based on the same innovative CP&IP technology.
“We are very enthusiastic about supporting a company such as PEP-Therapy which offers a real added value in targeted treatments for cancers that are still poorly treated. The company benefits from the favourable scientific ecosystem of prestigious institutions, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, and Institut Curie and Gustave Roussy for the future clinical trials. We are happy to contribute to the emergence of future European champions” declares Philippe Tramoy, Partner at the Quadrivium 1 seed fund at Seventure Partners.
About PEP-Therapy
PEP-Therapy is a medical biotechnology company, which develops targeted therapies for severe diseases having high medical needs, with an initial focus on cancers.
PEP-Therapy operates a Cell Penetrating & Interfering Peptides (CP&IP) technology for the development of its therapeutic products. These innovative molecules penetrate cells and specifically block relevant protein-protein interactions, thus inhibiting key pathological mechanisms.
Founded in January 2014, PEP-Therapy is building on research results from Inserm, Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) and Institut Curie. The company is a member of the Genopole biocluster.
In April 2015, PEP-Therapy raised €1.3 M in initial funding.
For more details: www.pep-therapy.com
About Seventure Partners
With over €660m in assets under management as of the end of 2016, Seventure Partners is a leading venture capital firm in Europe. Since 1997, Seventure Partners has invested in innovative businesses with high growth potential in two fields: Digital technologies in France and Germany, and Life sciences across Europe, Israel and North America. Investments can range between €500k and €10m per round, or up to €20m per company, from early to late stage.
Seventure is a subsidiary of Natixis Global Asset Management. Natixis is the international corporate, investment, insurance and financial services arm of Groupe BPCE, the second-largest banking group in France.
For more details: http://www.seventure.fr/en/ Twitter @SeventureP
About Quadrivium 1 seed fund
Quadrivium 1 Seed Fund is one of the venture capital funds managed by Seventure Partners. This fund provides seed capital to French companies (FNA – Programme d’Investissement d’Avenir) in the fields of life science and digital technologies, generated by or with links to an academic grouping built around UPMC, Université Paris II, Université Paris IV, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Université Technologique de Compiègne, CNRS, Institut Curie, Fondation Pierre Gilles de Gennes, Fondation Voir et Entendre and Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL).
About Bernard Majoie
Dr Bernard Majoie had an illustrious career in the pharmaceutical industry, notably as Scientific Director and then Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Laboratoires Fournier. He now invests in high-potential projects led by committed researcher-entrepreneurs. Among other investments, PEP-Therapy is the second French company in which Dr Majoie keeps investing, both were spun out from Institut Curie and Inserm which tells good research and significant promises in favour of patients.
Dr Majoie is also Founding Chairman of la Fondation Fournier-Majoie pour l’Innovation (FFMI), which actively supports the development of new biomarkers in oncology.
