-- Third Rock Ventures Leads Round --
LEXINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- TARIS Biomedical®, a specialty pharmaceutical company pioneering the development of innovative, targeted therapies using drug delivery to treat bladder diseases, announced today that it has raised $18.3 million of new capital in connection with its Series B equity financing. Third Rock Ventures, a new investor, led the round and all existing TARIS investors, Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners and Polaris Venture Partners, participated. The company’s prior bridge financing was also converted into equity in connection with the round.
"This round of funding demonstrates the significant progress we have made, and validates our investors’ belief in the potential of TARIS’s proprietary platform to develop innovative therapeutics for genitourinary diseases," said Sarma Duddu, PhD, President and CEO, TARIS Biomedical®. "This investment will allow us to advance our lead product candidate, Lidocaine Releasing Intravesical System (LiRIS®), into later stage clinical development for the treatment of multiple bladder disorders, and to continue to build the rest of our pipeline of novel therapeutics, leveraging common, minimally invasive urological procedures.” TARIS recently announced that it has initiated clinical testing in moderate to severe interstitial cystitis patients.
In connection with this financing transaction, Cary Pfeffer, MD, of Third Rock Ventures will join the Board of Directors of TARIS Biomedical. He joins board members Dennis A. Ausiello, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital; Kevin J. Bitterman, PhD, Polaris Venture Partners; Michael J. Cima, PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Sarma Duddu, PhD, TARIS Biomedical; Michael A. Greeley, Flybridge Capital Partners; Ed Kania, Flagship Ventures, Robert S. Langer, ScD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Ernest Mario, PhD, PPD Inc.
“TARIS is building an industry-leading drug-device convergence platform in the emerging field of sustained therapeutic delivery to the bladder,” said Cary Pfeffer, MD, Partner at Third Rock Ventures. “We at Third Rock Ventures are enthusiastic about the potential of the TARIS core technology and I look forward to working with TARIS’s leadership team as they advance programs with the potential for significant improvements over current treatment options.”
About Bladder Disease
Bladder diseases, which are difficult to treat with systemic therapies, affect 60 million people in the U.S. alone. These diseases include interstitial cystitis (IC)/painful bladder syndrome (PBS), bladder cancer, overactive bladder, urinary tract infections and chronic pelvic pain syndrome.
About TARIS Biomedical®
TARIS Biomedical® is a product-focused drug delivery company treating genitourinary conditions, with deep domain expertise in the sustained local delivery of therapeutics to target tissues. TARIS is focused on developing a pipeline of novel therapeutics designed to leverage common, minimally invasive urologic procedures. The TARIS core technology and development efforts are being applied to diseases with high unmet medical need in which current therapies or systemic treatments have failed. TARIS is initially focused on treating disorders of the genitourinary system, specifically the treatment of bladder diseases. Its most advanced product candidate LiRIS® is currently in clinical development for the treatment of interstitial cystitis (IC). Based in Lexington, MA, TARIS Biomedical’s technology was developed by internationally renowned scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Robert Langer ScD and Michael Cima PhD, and is backed by leading venture capital firms Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners, Polaris Venture Partners and Third Rock Ventures. For more information, visit www.tarisbiomedical.com.
CONTACT:
TARIS Biomedical
Sarma Duddu, Ph.D., 781-676-7750
President and CEO
or
Media Contact:
For TARIS Biomedical
Gina Nugent, 617-460-3579
[email protected]
KEYWORDS: United States North America Massachusetts
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Health Biotechnology Pharmaceutical General Health
MEDIA:
| Logo |