SironRX Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing novel regenerative therapies to accelerate dermal and bone healing, announced today a $3.4 million Series A investment led by North Coast Angel Fund. Additional investors include Cleveland Clinic, JumpStart Inc., Fletcher Spaght Investments, Glengary LLC, Ohio Tech Angel Fund III, Early Stage Partners, X Gen Ltd. and a significant number of individuals.
"We are excited to have secured this financing from a strong investor syndicate that includes both venture capitalists and angel investors," states Rahul Aras, Ph.D., who is SironRX's co-founder, President and CEO. "We will use the funds to build the SironRX team and execute on key clinical-stage milestones."
SironRX has exclusively licensed JVS-100 in the fields of dermal and bone repair from Juventas Therapeutics. JVS-100 encodes Stromal cell-Derived Factor 1 (SDF-1), a naturally occurring factor that activates the body's own repair processes. Juventas is developing JVS-100 for treatment of cardiovascular disease and recently completed a successful Phase I clinical trial demonstrating safety and preliminary efficacy in Class III heart failure patients.
"While the SDF-1 repair biology is well-conserved in nearly all end-organ systems, including the heart, skin and bone, the final product formulations, delivery and target clinical indications will differ significantly between the two companies," indicates Marc Penn, M.D., Ph.D., SironRX's Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer and Director of Research for the Summa Cardiovascular Institute. "Separating the companies allows each to develop SDF-1 for very different market segments in a focused and orderly way."
SironRX will undertake its initial clinical trials to evaluate the safety and efficacy of JVS-100 for promoting dermal wound closure and scar reduction post-surgery. In addition, there is potential to address a broader spectrum of dermal and bone related clinical indications, including burns, chronic wounds and fractures at a future date.
"SironRX presents an outstanding combination of strong technology, large target markets and a proven team of founders that we are excited to back," states Claiborne Rankin, Managing Member of North Coast Angel Fund and SironRX Board Chairman. "We see the very broad, heavily Ohio-based investor group as a further indicator of the region's commitment to supporting strong companies in the biomedical field."