Healthtech Startup Avammune Bags $12 Mn From Capital 2B, Others

SUMMARY

The funding round was also co-led by Shastra VC and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers’ Life Sciences Fund I

The company plans to use the fresh funds to boost its IP portfolio and support the clinical development of its lead candidate AVA-NP-695

Founded in 2020, Avammune Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical startup working on discovery of small molecule medicines

Healthtech startup Avammune Therapeutics has raised $12 Mn (INR 100 Cr) as a part of its Series A funding round co-led by Capital 2B, Shastra VC and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers’ Life Sciences Fund I.

The round also saw participation from IvyCap Ventures, 1Crowd and others.

The company plans to use the fresh capital to boost its IP portfolio and support clinical development of its lead candidate AVA-NP-695 (an ENPP1 inhibitor) and preclinical development of other pipeline molecules.

Founded by Arun B Papaiah, Srinivasan Namala and Aditya Kulkarni in 2020, Avammune Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical startup working on discovery of small molecule medicines which influences the immune system for treatment of cancer and autoimmune disorders.

“This funding validates our extensive preclinical datasets and empowers us to accelerate the development of our lead program into the clinic for addressing critical unmet needs in oncology,” Papaiah said.

As per Avammune, its lead asset AVA-NP-695, has shown powerful anti-tumor effects in preclinical models of osteosarcoma, Ewing’s sarcoma, and breast cancer.

“The best-in-class profile of AVA-NP-695 combined with its strong antitumor activity in veterinary cancers in “compassionate use” settings demonstrates a differentiated dataset in the field,” said Avammune’s chief scientific officer Kulkarni.

The pharmaceutical industry in the country is actively evolving and shaping the medicine production segment. For instance, the country recently unveiled its first indigenous macrolide antibiotic, Nafithromycin.

Besides, several Indian startups are also ramping up to contribute to this industry. Startups like Boltzmann and immunitoAI are leveraging AI to expedite drug discovery.

Last year, Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk, known for its weight loss drug Wegovy, partnered with 10 Indian AI startups to streamline its operations. Back then, the company said that it is leveraging tools built by homegrown AI startups for tasks such as summarising documents, extracting insights and checking for editing errors.

Around the same time, biotech startup Ahammune Biosciences also raised $5 Mn (about INR 41 Cr) in its Series A round led by pi Ventures to conduct the second phase of human clinical trials for its drug candidate for vitiligo.