LEAD Therapeutics
Pappas Ventures was one of the initial institutional investors in LEAD, a small-molecule drug discovery company that validated drug targets with rapid, exceptionally efficient lead-optimization strategies, utilizing chemists based in Shanghai. The company’s pipeline in oncology included a PARP inhibitor program that is now among the most promising programs of its type. BioMarin plans to begin Phase 3 trials of the PARP inhibitor in 2013.
BioMarin Pharmaceutical acquired LEAD in 2010.
Kezar Life Sciences is a clinical stage company developing novel small molecule therapeutics to treat autoimmune disorders and malignant diseases. Kezar's lead drug candidate, KZR‐616, leverages more than a decade of research directed by co‐founder Christopher Kirk into the unique role of the immunoproteasome in immune cell biology. In addition, Kezar is pursuing drug discovery programs targeting protein secretion and transmembrane protein expression that include a structured research collaboration with UC San Francisco.
Kezar completed a successful IPO in June 2018.
IlluminOss is a medical device company developing minimally invasive orthopedic systems for the stabilization and treatment of bone fractures. Its core technology involves the infusion (via a catheter) of a monomer into the intramedullary canal of a fractured bone. Activation of a light system cures the monomer, rapidly hardening it to provide support for low load-bearing bones, including osteoporotic bones weakened by age or disease. The company’s technology, customizable to each patient, is designed to eliminate the need for traditional methods of bone fixation with external pins, plates and screws.
Gentis is a biomaterials and orthopedics company that has developed and is testing a breakthrough, non-fusion technology for the treatment of spinal disc disease. The company’s lead product, DiscCell, is a radio-opaque implant designed to restore normal biomechanical function of a degenerated or surgically treated intervertebral disc by augmenting or replacing the worn-out gel-like tissue at its center (the nucleus pulposus). This treatment is intended to delay further degradation of the diseased disc and to reduce pain. If successful, the product has the potential to obviate the need for more invasive surgeries, leading to a better quality of life for patients.
The company ceased operations in 2016.
FlowCardia, acquired by C. R. Bard in 2010, developed and marketed products for the treatment of chronic total occlusions (CTOs) of coronary and peripheral arteries. Utilizing a technology known as high-frequency mechanical recanalization, the company developed the CROSSER™ System to safely and quickly break up CTOs allowing subsequent stent placement or balloon angioplasty and avoiding the trauma of cardiac surgery.
Envisia is a biotechnology company that licensed technology from Liquidia Technologies and is focused on the development of novel ocular therapies by leveraging the unique and powerful properties of the PRINT® platform. The company’s lead program, ENV515, is a novel extended-release formulation of a prostaglandin analogue for the treatment of glaucoma. It has the potential to offer glaucoma patients an innovative product that can provide sustained reduction in IOP over many months after a single administration.
Emerald is a bioagriculture company developing and manufacturing naturally occurring biochemicals for the enhancement of yield, quality and disease control in crops. We invested largely on the promise of its lead product, a growth-enhancing reagent containing GABA (gamma amino butyric acid), a non-protein amino acid that helps regulate mineral availability in plants. Use of the product can enhance flowering, increase fruit size, improve yields and suppress disease. Our stock in Emerald was repurchased by the company in 2009.
Elitra, whose assets were acquired by Merck in 2004, was an antimicrobial functional genomics company that focused on the identification, development and commercialization of novel antimicrobial compounds that target essential gene products of pathogenic organisms.
Founded in 1999, EBM stood for “evidence-based medicine” long before evidence- based medicine was in vogue. In collaboration with leading research institutions such as Duke University, Emory University, and Vanderbilt University, the company developed evidence-based clinical guidelines and tools to help hospitals, health plans, patients, and other healthcare stakeholders stay abreast of the best and most cost-effective treatments for hundreds of common diseases and medical conditions.
EBM Solutions was acquired by HealthGate Data Corp. in 2003.
Dynogen developed a portfolio of therapies for gastrointestinal and genitourinary disorders. It went out of business in 2009.
