Ocular Therapeutix scoops up $23.8M to advance eye therapies

Ocular Therapeutix has reeled in $23.8 million in a round of Series D financing, planning to use the funds to further advance sustained-release drug candidates travoprost and dexamethasone in its pipeline.

Bedford, MA-based Ocular says it was considering offers from several new investors but decided to accommodate its "strong existing investor interest" by extending the prior round of financing. Polaris Ventures, Versant Ventures, SV Life Sciences, Sparta LLC and Ascension Health Ventures all participated at or above their existing level in the current financing, according to a statement. The company has raised $65 million to date.

Ocular's travoprost delivered positive results late last year in treating glaucoma in a 20-patient study at a South African hospital. The company is also developing a sustained-release version of dexamethasone, an anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant steroid used in some types of eye drops, to treat postoperative eye pain and inflammation.

Current topical ophthalmic medications are not always effective because they act locally and do not distribute themselves throughout the body--an area in which sustained-release drugs offer an advantage.

Ocular says it will also use the new influx of cash to support U.S. commercial launch efforts and to develop sustained-release therapies for retinal diseases in collaboration with pharma partners.

- here's the press release