Pennsylvania startup Velicept Therapeutics has closed out the first tranche of a $21 million Series B financing – meant to advance Phase 2 development of its overactive bladder treatment.
The company plans to test higher doses of its overactive bladder drug, solabegron, in the Phase 2 trials. Solabegron was actually first developed by GlaxoSmithKline, but was acquired by another Pennsylvania company, AltheRx, in 2011. The drug was then being tested for irritable bowel syndrome as well.
AltheRx merged with a company called NeXeption Therapeutics just this past June to further development of solabegron. The funding for this round was led by CAM Capital and Longitude Capital.
Solabegron works by relaxing the bladder smooth muscle by stimulating beta 3-adenoreceptors. Previous Phase 2 work found an improvement of overactive bladder symptoms as compared to placebo. Phase 2 trials for IBS showed improvements in pain.
