Multi-million-dollar investments by Anges will help Vasomune progress its peptide-based therapy for blood vessel-related diseases to the clinic.

Vasomune Theraueptics, a Canada-based critical care peptide spinout from Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI) and commercialisation firm Mars Innovation, has secured multi-million-dollar commitments from biotherapeutics manufacturer Anges. The commitments are part of a co-development partnership between the pair focused on treating blood vessel-related diseases with Vasomune’s peptide-based Tie2 receptor agonist, branded Vasculotide. Anges will provide Vasomune with upfront and clinical milestone payments. Both parties will equally share all expenses and proceeds, including those resulting from any third-party licensing agreement. The partners are initially targeting a human proof-of-concept for using Vasculotide to treat acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a life-threatening condition in which the lungs are unable to provide other vital organs with enough oxygen. Clinical trials on ADRS are scheduled for 2020. Tie2’s underlying thesis could be repurposed to provide therapies for other critical care complications such as asthma, atopic dermatitis, glaucoma and the vascular effects of diabetes. Vasculotide was formulated for acute lung and kidney injuries resulting from a vascular leak which currently have no approved treatments. The Tie2 receptor lies on the surface on endothelial cells with two major growth factors responsible for balancing vascular stability. Vasomune Therapeutics previously secured C$1.5m ($1.3m) in 2014, receiving a third of the sum each from Mars Innovation, government research agency Genome Canada’s Genomics Applications Partnership Program and an unnamed pharmaceutical firm. The company was co-founded in 2012 by Daniel Dumont, a senior scientist in biological sciences at SRI who passed away in late 2015, and his then-PhD candidate Paul Van Slyke, who now serves as chief scientific officer. Eli Yamada, president and chief executive of Anges, said: “We are truly impressed by the quality of the research derived from Sunnybrook Research Institute and the unique partnership with Mars Innovation that has created and advanced Vasomune Therapeutics.” Rafi Hofstein, president and chief executive of Mars Innovation, said: “This unique partnership has attracted foreign capital and expertise to allow Vasomune, a Canadian born company to grow and scale in Canada and maintain the legacy of the late Dr Daniel Dumont.”

Subscribe to go deeper

GCV subscribers get access to all our proprietary data and deep-dive articles, as well as the global directory of CVC investors.



Not sure if you have a subscription?