SAN CARLOS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Glycomine, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing new therapies for orphan diseases, today announced that it has closed a $68 million Series B financing. The proceeds of the financing will be used to advance Glycomine’s lead drug candidate, GLM101, through initial clinical trials in patients. GLM101 is a novel substrate replacement therapy in development to treat phosphomannomutase 2-congenital disorder of glycosylation (PMM2-CDG), a rare disease representing a critical unmet medical need.
The Series B financing includes $35 million of new funds in addition to the $33 million announced in August 2019. Today’s financing was led by new investors, Abingworth and Sanofi Ventures, and joined by RiverVest Venture Partners and Remiges Ventures. In addition, all previous Series B investors – Novo Holdings A/S, Asahi Kasei Pharma Ventures, Mission BioCapital, Sanderling Ventures, and Chiesi Ventures – participated.
Glycomine’s CEO, Peter McWilliams, Ph.D., said, “We are delighted to have expanded our syndicate with these high-quality, experienced life science investors. We have demonstrated in preclinical studies that GLM101 can restore the glycosylation pathways that are disrupted in PMM2-CDG. This additional funding will enable us to confirm in the clinic the potential of GLM101 as a therapy for all PMM2-CDG patients, regardless of genotype, and we are looking forward to executing on our clinical program with this new infusion of capital.”
PMM2-CDG is the most prevalent congenital disease of glycosylation but has no FDA-approved treatments. Glycomine’s GLM101 is a mannose-1-phosphate replacement therapy in development to treat PMM2-CDG, a disease caused by a deficiency of the enzyme phosphomannomutase 2 (PMM2). PMM2 converts mannose-6-phosphate to mannose-1-phosphate, which is an essential sugar molecule in the N-glycosylation pathway and is crucially important for proper glycoprotein structure and function. GLM101 is designed to deliver mannose-1-phosphate directly into cells and thereby bypass the PMM2 enzyme deficiency and address all disease-causing PMM2 mutations to restore pathway function. GLM101 has received Orphan Drug Designation in the U.S. and Europe and Rare Pediatric Disease Designation in the U.S.
“Glycomine’s novel and scientifically informed approach shows the potential of GLM101 to be a significant disease-modifying treatment,” added Bali Muralidhar, M.D., Ph.D., Managing Partner with Abingworth. “Glycomine has developed a proprietary approach to delivering mannose-1-phosphate intracellularly to replace the missing sugar molecule. Initial clinical studies of GLM101 will be an important proof-of-concept, and we are excited to support the company at this pivotal stage.”
“PMM2-CDG is an important unmet need with no therapeutic option,” added Jim Trenkle, Ph.D., US Head of Investments at Sanofi Ventures. “We are enthusiastic to support Glycomine’s work to advance transformative therapies for PMM2-CDG patients and their families and caregivers.”
In connection with the financing, Dr. Muralidhar, Dr. Trenkle, and Niall O’Donnell, Ph.D., Managing Director of RiverVest, have been appointed to Glycomine’s Board of Directors.
About PMM2-CDG
PMM2-CDG (phosphomannomutase 2-congenital disorder of glycosylation), also known as CDG Type Ia, is the most prevalent of the more than 100 different congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG). CDGs result in defective formation of the glycan chains essential for the structure and function of glycosylated proteins that represent as many as 50% of all proteins in the body. PMM2-CDG is caused by a deficiency of the enzyme phosphomannomutase 2 (encoded by the PMM2 gene). The disease is a severe multisystem disorder with symptoms such as hypotonia, liver disease, coagulopathies, stroke-like episodes, as well as immune and nervous system disfunctions and resulting mortality of 20% in the early years of life. There are no FDA-approved treatments specific to PMM2-CDG for the more than 1,000 patients currently diagnosed with the disorder.
About Glycomine, Inc.
Glycomine is developing orphan drugs for serious rare disorders of metabolism and protein misfolding for which no other therapeutic options exist. The company's approach is to use replacement therapies – substrates, enzymes, or proteins – and to target those molecules to clinically relevant cellular compartments. The company is based in San Carlos, California and supported by leading international life sciences investors. For more info, visit www.glycomine.com.
About Abingworth
Abingworth is a leading transatlantic life sciences investment firm. Abingworth helps transform cutting-edge science into novel medicines by providing capital and expertise to top calibre management teams building world-class companies. Since 1973, Abingworth has invested in over 170 life science companies, leading to 44 M&As and 71 IPOs. Our therapeutic focused investments fall into three categories: seed and early-stage, development stage, and clinical co-development. Abingworth supports its portfolio companies with a team of experienced professionals at offices in London, Menlo Park (California), and Boston. For more info, visit www.abingworth.com.
About Sanofi Ventures
Sanofi Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Sanofi. Sanofi Ventures invests in early- stage biotech and digital health companies with innovative ideas and transformative new products and technologies of strategic interest to Sanofi. Among these areas are vaccines, oncology, immunology, rare diseases, potential cures in other core areas of Sanofi's business footprint, and digital health solutions. For more information, visit www.sanofiventures.com.
About RiverVest Venture Partners
RiverVest Venture Partners is a leading venture capital firm building life science companies to address significant unmet needs of patients and deliver consistently strong returns to investors. With headquarters in St. Louis and offices in San Diego and Cleveland, RiverVest accesses forward-thinking research and clinical expertise at leading institutions across the country to found and fund biopharma and medical device companies. For more info, visit www.rivervest.com.
About Remiges Ventures
Based in Seattle and Tokyo, Remiges Ventures is a US-Japan cross-border venture capital firm focused on therapeutics. Remiges Ventures takes a lead position for the syndication of Series A or later stage of investment rounds globally and actively creates new companies based on innovative assets discovered at Japanese academic institutions. Remiges Ventures’ team is connected with serial entrepreneurs, KOLs in various therapeutic areas, key consultants and major large pharmaceutical companies in the globe. The team actively participates in the value creation for its portfolio companies. For more info, visit www.remigesventures.com.
