AmacaThera Secures $3.25M Seed Funding to Advance Opioid Alternative AMT-143 into Phase I Trials

Recently, VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) learned that AmacaThera has raised $3.25 million in seed funding. The round was co-led by Sprout BioVentures and Viva Biotech, with participation from Gray Sky Venture Partners.

AmacaThera will utilize the proceeds from this funding round to conduct Phase I trials of its opioid alternative, validating its hypothesis through clinical testing and advancing the development of its drug delivery platform technology.

AmacaThera is a Toronto-based biotechnology company dedicated to the development and application of a unique injectable hydrogel platform technology. AmacaThera’s research team primarily includes Dr. Molly Shoichet and Dr. Mike Cooke.

AmacaThera’s primary project is the development of a combination product designed to manage postoperative pain. AmacaThera aims to leverage its proprietary technology to enable the sustained and controlled release of multiple therapeutic agents from biocompatible hydrogels. Its first product, AMT-143, is intended to replace opioids for post-surgical pain management.

“We have partnered with Molly and Mike to overcome technical bottlenecks in the field of hydrogel encapsulation therapy. The unique reverse thermal gelation properties of AMT-143 will provide AmacaThera with greater opportunities to significantly improve postoperative care for patients,” said Mike Serrano-Wu, Partner at Sprout BioVentures, enthusiastically.

Todd McIntyre, Partner at Gray Sky Venture Partners, stated, “Gray Sky is delighted to partner with the AmacaThera team to bring AMT-143 to market. There is a significant unmet need in the field of non-opioid pain management following surgery, and AmacaThera’s technology will provide a unique solution for the sustained release of analgesic medications.”

Sprout BioVentures invests in early-stage startups, dedicated to translating pivotal theories in human biology into viable therapies. The partners at Sprout BioVentures include Brian Hubbard, Dan Meyers, and Michael Serrano-Wu.

Viva Biotech operates an integrated drug R&D platform featuring numerous world-leading technologies. Dedicated to preclinical innovative drug development, Viva Biotech provides drug discovery and development services to biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients worldwide.

Viva Biotech’s services cover the full spectrum of customer needs in early-stage drug development, including target protein expression, structural studies, hit screening, lead optimization, and candidate drug selection.

As of April 30, 2018, Viva Biotech had provided drug discovery and development services to approximately 300 biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients, identified research targets for more than 1,000 individual drugs, and delivered over 7,000 independent protein structures.

Gray Sky Venture Partners is an early-stage investment fund that provides capital and intellectual property services to passionate entrepreneurs, helping them build a new generation of life sciences companies. These companies will make an impact in the complex and rapidly evolving healthcare system.