ViewPoint Therapeutics, a US-based biotechnology spinout focused on eye diseases, yesterday closed a $35m series B round featuring University of Michigan through its Michigan Investment in New Technology Startups (Mints) fund.
The round was led by the Rise Fund, managed by TPG Growth, and also included healthcare company Novo, Mission Bay Capital, Lagunita BioSciences, Biotechnology Value Fund and certain affiliates, and ViewPoint co-founder and chairman Ed Hurwitz.
Founded in 2014, ViewPoint is working on therapies for diseases caused by protein misfolding, a factor in age-related eye disorders, such as cataracts – a clouding of the lens that leads to impaired vision – and presbyopia – a long-sightedness caused by the lens of the eye losing its elasticity.
The spinout’s first pre-clinical candidate to emerge out of its drug discovery platform is VP1-001, a treatment aimed at age-related cataracts.
ViewPoint is based on research by Jason Gestwicki, who developed the technology while he was at University of Michigan. He is now a professor in University of California, San Francisco’s Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry.
Gestwicki collaborated with Usha Andley, a professor in University of Washington in St Louis’ Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences.
The series B funding will go towards the further development of VP1-001 through clinical proof-of-concept studies in patients with cataracts and presbyopia. The spinout also expects to advance several additional compounds.
Peter Moldt, partner at Novo, and Heath Lukatch, partner at TPG Growth, have joined the board of directors.
ViewPoint previously closed a $4m series A round in 2016 that featured Mints and was co-led by Mission Bay Capital and Lagunita Biosciences. The series A also included Asset Management Ventures, Biotechnology Value Fund and a range of private investors.
Leah Makley, co-founder and chief executive of ViewPoint, said: “Cataracts remain the world’s leading cause of blindness, and this financing will meaningfully advance our efforts to develop and commercialise a ground-breaking treatment.
“The high level of interest in our series B from reputable life science investors, as well as the company’s existing investors, is a testament to the progress we have made to date and the promise ViewPoint’s approach holds.
“I am especially honoured to have Heath and Peter join our board of directors; their involvement further strengthens the outstanding team of individuals helping shepherd ViewPoint’s technology forward.”
