Seattle biotech AltPep Corp. closed a $23 million series A funding round last week, which will go toward its Alzheimer’s research.
The biotech is a portfolio company of IntuitiveX, a Seattle life science incubator. Altpep's board of directors also made several additions, including Adaptive Biotechnologies CEO Chad Robins; David Goel, managing general partner and founded of Matrix Capital Management; and Joel Marcus, executive chairman and founder of Alexandria Real Estate Equities and Alexandria Venture Investments.
Matrix Capital Management of Waltham, Massachusetts, led the round, with participation from Alexandria Venture Investments.
AltPep has an exclusive license from the University of Washington for use of a technology that “has the potential to transform the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other (central nervous system)-mediated disorders,” according to a press release.
“This funding will allow us to build upon our promising preliminary data demonstrating detection of Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest stages and further our preclinical therapeutic program,” AltPep CEO Valerie Daggett said in the release.
Alzheimer’s is a particularly difficult pursuit for biotechs. Many prospective treatments fail in mid- to late clinical trials. Another Seattle biotech, Athira Pharma, which raised $204 million in an initial public offering last year, is also in pursuit of a treatment for Alzheimer’s.
“Particularly in the area of neurodegenerative disease, where so many have failed yet the need for effective treatments is paramount, it is rare to find such a promising and potentially paradigm shifting approach as AltPep is pursuing,” said Marcus of Alexandria. “We look forward to supporting the company’s continued success in this critical area of scientific discovery and biomedical innovation.”
AltPep recently expanded to a 7,000-square-foot headquarters in the Northlake area of Seattle. The company has fewer than 10 employees, but says it's looking to expand.
Source: Bizjournal