Exonate Closes Successful Funding Round - To Develop Eye Drops Treatment for Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD)

CAMBRIDGE, England, December 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

- New and existing investors participated in the round  

- Early stage biotechnology company targeting ophthalmology and other areas of unmet medical need  

Exonate, an early stage biotechnology company, today announced they have successfully closed their latest funding round. This is Exonate's third Angel round and is bolstered by further investment from the Angel Co Fund. The funding round also welcomed new investment from Australian venture fund Uniseed; University of Bristol Enterprise Fund, managed by Parkwalk; Martlet of Cambridge; Wren Capital as well as further Angel Investors and O2h Ventures. This brings the total amount raised at this round by Exonate to just under £1,500,000.

     (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161130/444099 )

The investment will be used to accelerate the development of Exonate's first therapeutic area of interest

- an eye drop for the treatment of wet Age-related Macular Degeneration as a much needed alternative to the current treatment by eye injections.

Exonate was delighted with the level of interest in this round. The company's strategy is to maintain its focus on topical delivery of ophthalmology products for diseases of the back of the eye and to expand its science base to address other disease areas including cancer. Exonate believes that its approach to wet AMD can provide significant improvements for patients in both efficacy of drug and a reduction in unpleasant injections into the eye. By leveraging the truly global span of this investment Exonate will become a successful company making scientific progress on three continents.

Exonate has an experienced international management team, with a wealth of clinical and start-up experience.

Commenting on the announcement, Dr Catherine Beech, CEO of Exonate, said: "I am very pleased at the successful close of this funding round. Exonate's early data is very promising and we have a clear aspiration to successfully deliver medicines in areas of unmet need. The funding will enable us to progress our currents programmes to develop drugs that can be easily administered as eye drops, improve adherence and benefit patients."

Peter Cowley at Martlet, the corporate angel fund of the £2bn Marshall of Cambridge aerospace and automotive engineering company added: "Martlet is pleased to add Exonate to our 35+ early stage

investments. The experienced management team and board, together with a Cambridge base, fits ideally within our investment criteria."

Dr Peter Devine, CEO of Uniseed commented: "Uniseed is pleased to be investing in Exonate which was formed on the basis of a medicinal chemistry programme at the University of New South Wales and cutting edge translational research from the Universities of Bristol and Nottingham. Exonate's novel small molecule approach to treating age related macular degeneration has the potential to have a significant clinical impact on patients who suffer from this disease, and increasing incidence with an aging population."

Alun Williams, Investment Director at Parkwalk Advisors added: "We are delighted to support this innovative Bristol University spin-out. Their science is exciting with a number of attractive applications potentially leading to big improvements in efficiency and patient experience. We see it as an excellent investment opportunity for the Fund."

Sunil Shah, Chairman of Exonate further added: "We would like to thank our new and existing investors including our highly supportive Business Angels for their investment. Without their involvement Exonate's scientific innovations would not be able to benefit patients with wet AMD or in the future potential patients with Cancer, Fibrosis and diseases of the Kidney."

About Exonate: 

Exonate is a privately held, early stage, biotech, company spun out of the University of Nottingham that is focused on Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). The Company has grown significantly in the last year as it welcomes investment and input from an increasing Global market. Exonate undertakes medicinal chemistry in laboratories in the University of New South Wales and in January 2017 will welcome John Kurek from Uniseed to its Board of Directors. Exonate continues to be funded from the University of Nottingham and also has links with the University of Bristol. Exonate continues to have strong links with Cambridge Angels and have offices based in Cambridge, laboratories in Nottingham and collaborations with laboratories in India.

It aspires to successfully deliver medicines in areas of unmet need, such as ophthalmology, pain, nephropathy and cancer, by targeting diseases through regulation of VEGF isoforms/variants that are both protective and disease promoting. Exonate's lead program is focused on wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration, known as wet AMD, which is the leading cause of vision loss in people aged 60 and older. The Company is founded on scientific excellence with strong links to Prof. David Bates and his lab at Nottingham University specialising in the biology and biochemical pathways of VEGF splice variants.

Exonate is led by an experienced, international management team that has worked together previously, successfully raising capital for start-ups and early stage companies over many years. Management has cross-disciplinary experience in medicine, finance, drug development and the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. CEO Catherine Beech, OBE, has over 25 years biotech/pharma experience including 12 years in big pharma leading development programs in cardiovascular, Parkinson's disease and HIV. Exonate is her 4th role as CEO of an emerging biotech company and she also has extensive experience as a non-executive board director.

About wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration (wet AMD): 

Today, wet AMD is a leading cause of vision loss in people aged 60 years or older and affects more than 30 million patients worldwide, over 200,000 of those in the UK alone. If untreated patients are likely to lose sight in the affected eye within 24 months of disease onset.

The main currently available treatment options for wet AMD are:

Please contact Louise Shave at Exonate for further information
01223 437042
louise.shave@exonate.com

SOURCE Exonate Ltd