AnaCardio, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical startup headquartered in Stockholm, has secured €17.8 million in a Collection A extension spherical to develop their drug candidate AC01.
The financing was co-led by Novo Holdings, Pureos Bioventures, and Sound Bioventures. Current buyers Flerie, Industrifonden, and Fredrik and Ann-Helene Ljungström additionally participated.
This funding will propel AnaCardio’s flagship drug candidate, AC01, via crucial medical trials focusing on coronary heart failure with decreased ejection fraction (HFrEF).
AnaCardio’s CEO Patrik Strömberg commented, “It is a landmark day for AnaCardio, the place we report a big financing spherical, welcome three distinguished new buyers, and announce the optimistic final result of the primary examine with AC01 in sufferers. We now have the info and funding to speed up the additional medical improvement of our first-in-class inotrope to enhance the lives of sufferers with coronary heart failure”.
AnaCardio was based in 2017 by Lars Lund, it’s a privately held Swedish medical stage biopharmaceutical firm growing novel medicine to deal with coronary heart failure. It was based based mostly on analysis from Karolinska Institutet exhibiting improved contractility of the guts muscle via a novel and differentiated mechanism.
AC01, the corporate’s lead candidate, is a first-in-class oral ghrelin receptor agonist designed to reinforce cardiac contractility. In contrast to conventional inotropes, AC01 has proven potential to enhance coronary heart operate with out antagonistic results generally related to present therapies, akin to tachycardia or hypotension.
The newly raised funds will help the completion of the section 1b/2a GOAL-HF1 examine, which features a 28-day cohort growth deliberate for early 2025. The examine’s earlier findings revealed AC01’s security and efficacy, demonstrating its capability to reinforce cardiac contractility whereas sustaining a beneficial security profile. These outcomes are hailed as a breakthrough in coronary heart failure therapies by AnaCardio.
“The examine outcomes exhibit that AC01 is a promising novel inotrope exhibiting indicators of elevated contractility with out antagonistic results, akin to tachycardia, arrhythmias, ischemia or hypotension that are sometimes seen with standard inotropes when administered to sufferers with coronary heart failure. AC01 proved to be well-tolerated and confirmed convincing goal engagement meriting development to the following improvement stage testing the drug for 28 days to ascertain proof-of-concept and allow progress to late-stage medical improvement”, commented Professor Lars Lund, CSO and Founding father of AnaCardio.
Becoming a member of AnaCardio’s Board of Administrators are Johan Kördel (Sound Bioventures), Jørgen Søberg Petersen (Novo Holdings), and Veronica Gambillara Fonck (Pureos Bioventures). Moreover, Viktor Drvota, CEO of Karolinska Improvement, will change Per Aniansson, and Karin Hehenberger, Advisor at 3BFuture Well being, will transition to a board observer function.
“Coronary heart failure with decreased ejection fraction stays a significant unmet medical want, affecting hundreds of thousands of lives worldwide. We’re thrilled to be a part of this groundbreaking initiative and proud to help the event of a brand new therapeutic choice that has the potential to considerably enhance outcomes for sufferers going through this difficult situation,” mentioned Johan Kördel, Managing Accomplice, Sound Bioventures.
