Maryland Momentum Fund and VTC Innovation Fund have both contributed to a series A round for Veralox Therapeutics, which is focusing on diseases with unmet needs.
Veralox Therapeutics, a US-based biotechnology developer advancing research from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and multiple universities, has completed a $16.6m series A round featuring Maryland Momentum Fund and VTC Innovation Fund.
The two funds, affiliated with University System of Maryland and Virginia Tech respectively, were joined by Hatteras Venture Partners, which led the round.
The transaction also attracted Sanofi Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of pharmaceutical firm Sanofi, and Alexandria Venture Investments, a vehicle for life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities.
Genesys Capital, Point Field Partners, JDRF’s T1D Fund and Tedco (also known as Maryland Technology Development Corporation) filled out the round.
Veralox is working on small molecule therapeutics that aim to treat the underlying causes of conditions with a high unmet medical need, such as type 1 diabetes and heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT).
HIT is a life-threatening condition that causes blood clots following an aberrant immune response to heparin, an anticoagulant drug used to treat patients suffering from a heart attack.
The company’s lead asset, VLX-1005, was discovered and developed at the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, together with researchers at University of California, Santa Cruz, Thomas Jefferson University and Eastern Virginia Medical School.
Michael Holinstat, vice-president for translational research at Veralox and associate professor of pharmacology at University of Michigan, is also a co-inventor.
Ben Scruggs, principal at Hatteras Venture Partners, and Jamie Stiff, managing director at Genesys Capital, will join Veralox’s board of directors.
Veralox previously secured $5.4m in a seed round backed by Maryland Momentum Fund, VTC Innovation Fund and VTC Seed Fund, as well as University of Vermont’s Health Network in 2019. The seed round was led by JDRF and also included Sanofi Ventures and Tedco.