Lysogene has raised 22.6M from its IPO on EuronextParis that will contribute to the completion of clinical trials to treat the rare genetic diseases. <\/p>\n
Karen Aiach, CEO of Lysogene, started the company back in 2009 to develop a life-saving treatment forher daughter Ornella withSanfilippo A. This rare genetic disease severely affects the nervous system of children, who often dont reach adulthood. <\/p>\n
No treatment beyond palliative care exists as of today, but Lysogene wants to change that. The company is developing a gene therapy toreplace thefaulty gene causing the disease. Lysogene entered the clinical stage in a record time and is now getting ready for a pivotal Phase II\/III trial, the last step before commercialization. <\/p>\n
Two-thirdsof the funds raised in its IPO will be used to support the completion of this trial, while a quarter will be invested in a Phase I\/II study for GM1 gangliosidosis, another rare neurodegenerative disease. The rest will be directed towards further R&D programs. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Of note,22.6Mis close to the minimum the company was expecting to raise, with a maximum of up to39.7M. A potential reason might be that investors are waryof the small patient population that could benefit from the therapy. Only around 3,000 people worldwide have been diagnosed with Sanfilippo A. <\/p>\n
Still, the company is backed by top VCs that seem confident in it.Of the total funds raised, 15Mcame from Lysogenes existing investors Sofinnova Partners, BpiFrance Investissement (InnoBio) and Novo A\/S. <\/p>\n
The IPO has set the companys market cap at82.1Mand will support its next steps towards commercialization. We were surprised to see it was launched in Paris rather than on the Nasdaqsince the company is very active in Boston and the US stock market is generally more welcoming for biotechs.Maybe Lysogene is saving it for a future time. <\/p>\n
For more info, read our interview with Karen Aiach or watch her speaking in arare disease panel at Labiotech Refresh: <\/p>\n
Images from Lysogene <\/p>\n
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Gene Therapy Biotech Founded to Save the CEO's Daughter Goes Public in France - Labiotech.eu (blog)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Lysogene has raised 22.6M from its IPO on EuronextParis that will contribute to the completion of clinical trials to treat the rare genetic diseases. Karen Aiach, CEO of Lysogene, started the company back in 2009 to develop a life-saving treatment forher daughter Ornella withSanfilippo A Continue reading