Denteric inspects $14m

Denteric, a UK-based periodontal gum disease vaccine developer spun out of University of Melbourne, attracted $14m in series A funding today from investors including the university and the Australian government-backed Biomedical Translation Fund.
Biotechnology firm CSL also contributed to the round. The Biomedical Translation Fund is managed by Brandon Capital.
Denteric is developing a vaccine treatment for periodontal gum disease. Also known as periodontitis, the disease occurs when plaque from teeth becomes lodged beneath the gum line and damages surrounding bone structures, causing serious long-term oral health problems.
The spinout will use the series A cash to advance its Porphyromonas gingivalis vaccine with a view to beginning its first clinical trial in the next two to three years.
Denteric’s approach builds on 15 years of research at the oral health division of the government-backed Cooperative Research Centres (CRC) program under the helm of founder and chief executive Eric Reynolds, a laureate professor at University of Melbourne’s Dental School.
CRC’s oral health program has now officially split from the national initiative to become the University of Melbourne-operated Centre for Oral Health Research.
Reynolds said: “My team has been developing this critical treatment for periodontal disease over many years at University of Melbourne. Today, in a true partnership with the Australian government and private capital, we have launched a company which will bring a Melbourne-developed gum disease therapy to market.”