Seaport Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company in the clinical stage, centred on an innovative drug delivery system initially created by researchers from Monash University, announced the completion of a Series A funding round, which raised USD 100 million (AUD 154 million).
The round was jointly spearheaded by ARCH Venture Partners and Sofinnova Investments in collaboration with Third Rock Ventures and Seaport founder PureTech Health, the university said in a news release.
The company is propelled by its proprietary GlyphTM platform, originally conceived by Professor Christopher Porter and his team at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS).
Seaport Therapeutics is channelling efforts into a clinical-stage pipeline of neuropsychiatric medications addressing critical unmet patient needs such as depression and anxiety disorders.
According to the biopharmaceutical firm, these conditions have been hindered by substantial limitations like minimal oral bioavailability or hepatotoxicity.
The Glyph platform circumvents these obstacles by redirecting absorption mechanisms, and facilitating oral administration while minimising liver exposure.
Collaboration between Professor Porter, the MIPS team, and Seaport’s founder PureTech since 2017 has propelled the platform’s progression and advanced development candidates like SPT-300 (formerly known as LYT-300), an oral formulation of allopregnanolone.
Jamie Simpson, PhD, formerly a MIPS group leader and collaborator with the Porter Research Group at Monash University and an original co-inventor of the Glyph Technology, now serves as head of Chemistry at Seaport Therapeutics.
Professor Porter expressed satisfaction seeing the Glyph technology utilised to unlock the full potential of neuropsychiatric medications, making treatments more accessible and effective for individuals grappling with a range of neurological conditions.
“It has been rewarding to see the Glyph technology being used to attempt to unlock the full potential of neuropsychiatric medicines and make much-needed treatments easier, more effective and more accessible for those living with a broad range of neurological conditions,” said Professor Porter.
Daphne Zohar, founder and CEO of Seaport Therapeutics, expressed dedication to delivering first-in-class medicines to individuals coping with depression, anxiety, and other neuropsychiatric disorders.
“I’m excited to deliver on this mission along with a stellar team of senior leaders and investors,” Zohar noted. m
Alongside Professor Porter, the team at Monash University that pioneered the Glyph technology included Associate Professor Natalie Trevaskis, Dr Sifei Han, Dr Luojuan Hu, Dr Dan Zheng, Dr Nathania Leong, Dr Garima Sharma, Dr Xiaotong Zhou, Dr Enyuan Cao, and Dr Mitchell McInerney.
