Eyestem, a Bengaluru-based cell therapy company, has raised $6.4 million in Series A funding round led by Biological E. Limited, Alkem, NATCO and promoters of Kemwell Biopharma, Anurag and Karan Bagaria. The round also saw participation of existing investors Endiya Partners and Kotak Private Equity.
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"We started Eyestem with the sole purpose of being able to create cell therapy products at scale for diseases that devastate a large number of people in India and the world. Post this funding, we will remain focused on solidifying our cell therapy platform and moving our flagship product for Dry AMD through early clinical trials of an international standard," said Dr, Jogin Desai, founder and CEO, Eyestem.
The company's vision is to develop a scalable cell therapy platform to treat incurable diseases and democratize access to these newer technologies globally. Eyecyte-RPE, the company's patented flagship product, is an experimental treatment for Dr Age-Related Macular Degeneration (Dry AMD) and the company has other products in the pipeline for the treatment of incurable diseases affecting humanity. The company intends to file for a first in human trial for the product within a year in consultation with CDSCO and US FDA, claimed by the company in a statement.
"We are very happy to be associated with Eyestem for their innovative work that services unmet needs of patients that have high impact for quality life," said Rajeev Nannapaneni, CEO, NATCO Pharma Limited.
Founded in 2016 by an experienced team of clinical research, regenerative medicine and ophthalmology experts, Eyestem is advised by a world-class Board and has built collaborations with other leaders and in related scientific disciplines in India, UK, Japan and the US.