Marche-en-Famenne, Belgium, September 17th, 2014 – Bioxodes SA, the Belgian-based start-up developing pharmaceutical products derived from natural sources, announces that it has successfully brought its lead product, Ir-CPI, through pre-clinical development confirming its potential as the first in a new class of antithrombotic medicines. The company is now poised to initiate the studies required for clinical entry.
In addition, Bioxodes has been selected to present at the forthcoming BioPharm America® 2014 conference to be held in Boston USA from September 22-24.
The company will use this opportunity to launch its Series A investment round, intended to fund the company for the next few years and to enable clinical studies in healthy volunteers.
In 2013, Bioxodes raised EUR 2.6m (USD 3.5m) of seed funding from a consortium of business angels and Belgian investment funds.
The funding round to be launched in Boston will enable the company to generate all the necessary data required by regulators and to complete a phase I program.
In pre-clinical testing, Ir-CPI which is derived from tick saliva, inhibits key factors of the contact pathway of the blood coagulation cascade. Thanks to this novel mechanism of action, Ir-CPI is potentially the world’s first injectable antithrombotic for use in all patient groups without impairing haemostasis.
The potential for much reduced bleeding could significantly expand use of antithrombotic protection and improve outcomes in a number of hospital-based procedures.
Bioxodes, led by its founding CEO and chief scientific officer, Professor Edmond Godfroid is exploiting the results of work conducted by his former team at the University of Brussels (ULB) on the molecular basis of host-parasite relationships.
Professor Godfroid said; “I am delighted with our progress so far in developing Ir-CPI, which has met the milestones set for it and has maintained its promise to provide a unique balance between antithrombotic benefit and hemorrhagic side effect. The Bioxodes team is looking forward to taking this remarkable molecule into clinical development.”
In particular, Ir-CPI could for the first time eliminate the need for anticoagulant reversal or ‘washing out’, currently required at the end of certain hospital procedures to avoid bleeding, and allow uninterrupted antithrombotic protection.
The market for an injectable form of such a molecule is estimated to exceed USD 1 billion annually. The world antithrombotic drug market will reach a revenue of USD 24.3 billion in 2015, according to Visiongain.
Bioxodes received a grant from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and the Walloon Region in Belgium via the Retech program for Research & Technology. The Wallonia Export and Investment Agency (AWEX) also backed Bioxodes to attend at BioPharm America.
More information on the BioPharm presentation:
Next Generation Presentation - 12pm
Wednesday September 24 on Level 3 in the Suffolk Room.
About Biodoxes
Bioxodes develops products based on active molecules derived from natural sources. The company intends to develop a portfolio of such products with a wide range of beneficial healthcare applications in humans. Professor Godfroid’s original research involved the collaboration of academic groups from Université Catholique de Louvain, Université de Namur, and Université de Liège as well as the Université de Neuchatel, Switzerland.
Founded by an experienced group of seasoned healthcare and biotech executives with extensive experience in research, drug development, and commercialisation, Bioxodes is based in Marche-en-Famenne (Belgium), with operations in the BioPark at Gosselies.
Further details - http://www.bioxodes.com
About Ir-CPI
Ir-CPI is a multi-target drug, which was discovered in the saliva of the tick. Following a bite, the tick feeds on the blood of its host. A particular characteristic of this feeding is its extended duration of up to two weeks. This long feeding involves no pain, blood clotting or inflammation. Scientists believe the effects result from the presence of active principles in the saliva of the tick which have benefited from millennia of biomolecular evolution.
About the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
The ERDF aims to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the European Union by correcting imbalances between its regions
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/thefunds/regional/index_en.cfm
About RETECH
RETECH is the Walloon Region’s structural fund established to support research and technology companies in the region.
http://recherche-technologie.wallonie.be/fr/menu/acteurs-institutionnels/service-public-de-wallonie-services-en-charge-de-la-recherche-et-des-technologies/departement-du-developpement-technologique/direction-des-projets-de-recherche/fonds-structurels-2007-2013/retech/retech.html
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