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Imara Inc. is dedicated to developing novel therapeutics for people living with sickle cell disease and other hemoglobinopathies. Sickle cell disease is a rare, genetic blood disease that causes red blood cells to sickle and become damaged, activating immune cells and blocking blood flow in capillaries, injuring many organs and causing daily pain. Imara is developing IMR-687, a highly selective, potent small molecule inhibitor of phosphodiesterase-9 (PDE9i), to treat patients with sickle cell disease. Imara was launched following an 18-month scientific collaboration between orphan drug accelerator Cydan Development and H. Lundbeck A/S.
Catamaran Bio is developing novel, off-the-shelf CAR-NK cell therapies designed to treat a broad range of cancers, including solid tumors. Our proprietary capabilities enable us to harness the natural cancer-fighting properties of NK cells and enhance and tailor their effectiveness with the power of synthetic biology and innovative non-viral cell engineering. We are using our TAILWINDTM Platform, an integrated suite of technologies, to specifically address the end-to-end methods of engineering, processing and manufacturing NK cells and rapidly advance our pipeline of CAR-NK cell therapy programs. Our team combines experienced biopharmaceutical leadership with founding scientists who are pioneers in NK cell biology, engineering, manufacturing and clinical application. Catamaran is backed by leading financial and corporate investors, including SV Health Investors, Sofinnova Partners, Lightstone Ventures, Takeda Ventures and Astellas Venture Management.
Drugstore Pharmacy is a Calgary, AB-based company in the Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals, and Biotech sector.
NovaTec Consultants, Inc. is a Vancouver, BC-based company in the Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals, and Biotech sector.
Epizyme is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and plans to commercialize innovative personalized therapeutics for patients with genetically defined cancers. We systematically identify the genetic alterations that create cancer causing genes, called oncogenes, select patients in whom the identified genetic alteration is found, and then design small molecule therapeutic product candidates to inhibit the oncogene. The clinical development plan for each of our therapeutic product candidates is directed towards patients with a particular genetically defined cancer. Our approach is part of a broader trend towards personalized therapeutics based on first identifying the underlying cause of a disease affecting specific patient populations, applying rational drug design tools to create a therapeutic to inhibit a molecular target in the identified disease pathway, and using a companion diagnostic to select the right patients for treatment. We have built a proprietary product platform that we use to create small molecule inhibitors of a 96-member class of enzymes known as histone methyltransferases, or HMTs. Genetic alterations can result in changes to the activity of HMTs, making them oncogenic. When Epizyme was founded, we recognized that the HMT class of enzymes might contain many potential oncogenes and presented the opportunity to discover, develop and commercialize multiple personalized therapeutics. We have prioritized 20 of the 96 HMTs as attractive targets for personalized therapeutics based on their oncogenic potential. Our two most advanced therapeutic product programs target the HMTs DOT1L (for the treatment of acute leukemias with genetic alterations of MLL) and EZH2 (for a genetically defined subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and solid tumors including INI1-deficient tumors). We believe that our ongoing Phase 1 adult trial for EPZ-5676, targeting DOT1L, is the first clinical trial of an HMT inhibitor. In May 2014, we initiated a Phase 1b clinical trial for EPZ-5676 in pediatric patients with MLL-r leukemia, which is considered to be the last largely untreatable pediatric acute leukemia. We are also conducting a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of EPZ-6438, which is being developed for the treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and solid tumors including INI1-deficient tumors such as synovial sarcoma and malignant rhabdoid tumors, or MRT. We were founded in 2007 and are led by a management team with extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry. We have entered into therapeutic collaborations with Celgene, Eisai and GSK that have provided us with approximately $184 million in non-equity funding. As of June 30, 2014, we had $232.1 million in cash, cash equivalents and accounts receivables.