To avoid spontaneous stroke or vein thrombosis, currently millions of patients in the US routinely take factor Xa inhibitors, also called direct oral anti-coagulants (DOACs), such as apixaban, edoxaban or rivaroxaban. There is a significant unmet medical need, as no effective treatment is available for patients experiencing severe (internal) bleeding or requiring emergency surgery. Due to the increasing use of factor Xa inhibitors for anti-coagulation, the global market for this compound is growing rapidly.
Investors
With their investments, BGV and InnovationQuarter enable the company to speed up the development of the compound, particularly setting up the manufacturing process. Previously VarmX received a pre-seed investment from Leiden University and UNIIQ, the early-stage proof-of-concept investment fund for the Province of Zuid-Holland.
Pieter Reitsma, Professor emeritus of Molecular and Experimental Medicine at LUMC and CSO of VarmX explains: “Innovative research into the properties of a snake venom provided the scientific basis for the factor Xa reversal agent. This is exemplary of the translation of basic research into a potential life-saving therapy.”
This is exemplary of the translation of basic research into a potential life-saving therapy
Francis Quint, Head InnovationQuarter Capital, states: “We are very pleased to invest in a LUMC spin off taking a promising research program conducted in Leiden onto the global stage of pharmaceutical development.”
“We believe the product is based on very elegant science in an area of significant and growing unmet need: unstoppable bleeding in an increasing patient population. It fits very well with our funds’ focus on truly innovative products that have the potential to positively impact patient care” comments Oskar Slotboom, partner at BGV and chairman of VarmX.