Boston, MA – February 21, 2018 – Cerevance, a drug discovery and development company focused on brain diseases, today announced that it has received an additional equity investment as well as a non-dilutive cash payment in the first six weeks of 2018 totaling more than $10 million.
The Dementia Discovery Fund, which previously invested in Cerevance in May and November of 2017, increased its ownership position by fifty percent, while Takeda Pharmaceuticals Company Limited made a payment to the company triggered by Cerevance achieving a key milestone in implementing its proprietary NETSseq target discovery platform. The company has now brought in over $43 million in cash since its inception in the end of 2016.
Cerevance’s scientists have begun to apply the company’s unique molecular profiling capability to more than 3,000 human brain tissue samples that it has assembled and used its extensive data pipeline to analyze specific populations of neurons and glia across different disease states and ages.
As it continues to aggressively scale its tissue access and discovery operations, the company expects to reveal therapeutic targets selectively expressed in brain cell types that are most vulnerable in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, as well as targets whose modulation may correct disrupted circuits in disorders such as anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, autism and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Cerevance is also comparing glial cells across the brain that play a role in diseases involving neuro-inflammation. The company plans to develop new therapeutics against its targets using small-molecules, antibodies and other modalities, independently as well as with partners.
“We’re seeing important differences between distinct cell types in the human brain and between different individuals, including the changes brought about by aging and disease,” commented Cerevance CEO Brad Margus. “Our platform even allows us to measure the expression of genes and proteins that are expressed at very low levels, but that may still be valuable therapeutic targets, giving us a significant edge over other technologies.”
About Cerevance
Cerevance is a clinical-stage, drug discovery and development company focused on central nervous system diseases. The company’s strengths include a powerful technology platform, a pipeline of novel discovery-stage and clinical-stage compounds and a proven team. Its mission is to deliver life-changing therapeutics for patients who have brain-related disorders. For additional information, please visit www.cerevance.com.
Contacts
Cerevance:
Robert Middlebrook, +1-408-220-5722
