Alizé Pharma 3, a France-based biopharmaceutical startup based on research at University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill, University of Maine and Harvard University, secured €67m ($74.6m) on Tuesday in a series A round led by investment firm LSP.
Novo Ventures, Partners Innovation and Sham Innovation Santé, respective investment vehicles for pharmaceutical firm Novo, healthcare provider Partners Healthcare and insurer Sham, took part in the round.
Management consulting firm TAB and Crédit Agricole Creation, an investment vehicle for banking cooperative Crédit Agricole, as well as investment bank Bpifrance’s Innobio 2 fund, Kurma Partners, Orbimed and Pontifax also participated.
Alizé Pharma 3 is developing drugs that are intended to treat metabolic diseases and diseases of the endocrine system, the hormone-based messenger system that includes the thyroid and adrenal glands. It is the third entity to carry the Alizé Pharma name.
The original Alizé Pharma was acquired by Millendo Therapeutics in an all-share deal in late 2017, after Alizé Pharma II had been bought by Jazz Pharmaceuticals for up to €18m the year before.
Both companies had been backed by Sham Innovation Santé, holding company CEMA and Octalfa. Alizé Pharma also counted Bpifrance as an investor while Alizé Pharma II’s backers included TAB Consulting.
A portion of the series A capital will be used to advance Alizé Pharma 3’s product portfolio, including AZP-3601, a formulation of a hormone called PTH that is intended to treat hypoparathyroidism, a condition where insufficient PTH is produced by the body.
The company is also developing AZP-3404, an insulin-like growth factor-binding protein intended to treat syndromes caused by severe insulin resistance.
The remaining proceeds will be used to expand the Alizé Pharma 3 team based in the city of Lyon, in addition to forming a US subsidiary and potentially making acquisitions.
While not a spinout itself, Alizé Pharma 3 exclusively exploits university research. Some of its assets have been licensed from New Paradigm Therapeutics, a spinout of UNC Chapel Hill, while the other candidates trace their origin to Harvard University and University of Maine.
The company previously raised $1.9m in a seed round in 2015 backed by Sham Innovation Santé, Crédit Agricole Création, TAB Consulting, Rhône-Alpes Création, Octalfa and Sofimac Partners’ FPCI Emergence Innovation 1 fund.
– A version of this article first appeared on our sister site, Global Corporate Venturing.

France-based biopharmaceutical startup Alizé Pharma 3 secured €67m ($74.6m) on Tuesday in a series A round featuring corporate venturing vehicles for pharmaceutical firm Novo, healthcare provider Partners Healthcare and insurer Sham.

Investment firm LSP led the round, which included management consulting firm TAB and Crédit Agricole Creation, an investment vehicle for banking cooperative Crédit Agricole, as well as investment bank BPIfrance’s Innobio 2 fund, Kurma Partners, Orbimed and Pontifax.

Novo and Partners Healthcare took part through strategic investment subsidiaries Novo Ventures and Partners Innovation while Sham contributed through the VC fund it controls, Sham Innovation Santé.

Alizé Pharma 3 is developing drugs that are intended to treat metabolic diseases and diseases of the endocrine system, the hormone-based messenger system that includes the thyroid and adrenal glands. It is the third entity to carry the Alizé Pharma name.

The original Alizé Pharma was acquired by Millendo Therapeutics in an all-share deal in late 2017, after Alizé Pharma II had been bought by Jazz Pharmaceuticals for up to €18m the year before.

Both companies had been backed by Sham Innovation Santé, holding company CEMA and Octalfa. Alizé Pharma also counted BPIfrance as an investor while Alizé Pharma II’s backers included TAB Consulting.

Aliza Pharma 3 had received approximately $1.9m in funding from Sham Innovation Santé, TAB Consulting, Crédit Agricole Création, CEMA, Octalfa, Sofimac and Rhône-Alpes Création in 2015.

A portion of the series A capital will be used to advance Alizé Pharma 3’s product portfolio, including AZP-3601, a formulation of a hormone called PTH that is intended to treat hypoparathyroidism, a condition where insufficient PTH is produced by the body.

The company is also developing AZP-3404, an insulin-like growth factor-binding protein intended to treat syndromes caused by severe insulin resistance. It is based on research licensed from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Maine.

The remaining proceeds will be used to expand the Alizé Pharma 3 team based in the city of Lyon, in addition to forming a US subsidiary and potentially making acquisitions.