Cary-based clinical-stage pharmaceutical company CeNeRx BioPharma has raised $9 million in new capital and in-licensed what it describes as a promising novel agent to treat neurodegeneration disorders.
The new financing includes a $5 million credit facility from MidCap Financial and an additional $4 million invested by current shareholders Pappas Ventures, Aisling Capital and L Capital Partners. CeNeRx plans to use the proceeds to advance its pipeline of promising clinical and preclinical stage compounds for mood disorders, neurodegenerative conditions, and pain and spasticity.
CeNeRx licensed CXB909 from Krenitsky Pharmaceuticals, a Durham drug-development firm founded in 1995 by former employees of Burroughs Wellcome Co after Burroughs was acquired by Glaxo.
Daniel Burch, M.D., CeNeRx executive vice president of R&D and chief medical officer, said, "In preclinical studies, our small molecule agent CXB909 has been shown to increase the action of native NGF, but without the pharmacokinetic and administration challenges of recombinant NGF. Most notably, CXB909 crosses the blood-brain barrier, has a long half-life and is orally available. The preclinical data for this agent is very promising, and we look forward to assessing it in the clinic for neuropathic and neurodegenerative conditions that currently have no treatment options."
CeNeRx also licensed a series of selective and reversible monoamine oxidase inhibitor compounds from Krenitsky. The lead compound in that program, TriRima, is in a Phase II trial for the treatment of major depressive disorder.