Savara Closes Series A Financing Round
--Funds Raised Will Be Used to Expand Technology into New Pulmonary Markets--
Austin, TX, June 5, 2009 -- Savara Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology inhalation drug delivery company, today announced that it has closed its Series A financing round.
The majority of Savara's existing investors participated in the round, which was made up of biotechnology industry veterans and successful business leaders. Savara will utilize the funds to continue development of its NanoCluster technology in the dry powder therapeutics market and expand into nebulizer and propellant markets.
"I'm excited that we exceeded our entire Series A fund raising goal in just a few weeks," said Rob Neville, Savara's Executive Chairman. "The funds from our seed round allowed us to validate our technology across multiple drug classes, which led to several partnerships with large pharmaceutical companies. We've assembled a world class team and are ready to pursue the numerous opportunities ahead of us."
Savara has the option to complete a second tranche of the Series A round later this year if additional funds are needed.
The key parameter to improving the efficacy of pulmonary products depends on being able to dial-in particles sizes in the range of one to three microns. The Savara NanoCluster technology has this capability without the need for novel excipients and benefits from a highly efficient manufacturing process. These NanoClusters are modeled after naturally occurring aerosols, which are highly effective in reaching the peripheral lung.
About Savara
Savara Pharmaceuticals, (www.savarpharma.com) develops next generation pulmonary drug delivery solutions using its NanoCluster formulation technology. Dry powder and nebulizer-based medicines are formulated directly from active drug ingredients, requiring no carrier particles and little or no excipients. The aerodynamics of NanoCluster formulations are fully customizable from one to seven microns enabling high drug concentrations at specific regions of the lung, independent of the rate or depth of breath. Savara expects that NanoCluster's unique features will produce numerous patient benefits including reduced dosage, enhanced efficacy, improved safety and increased tolerability, as well as greater patient convenience. Savara's NanoCluster technology is currently available for evaluation and licensing.