FreeOx Biotech, a spin-out of Hospital Clinic Barcelona-IDIBAPS which is developing a new class of neuroprotective drugs, has closed its first round of funding with EUR500,000 from private investors Montserrat Esteve and Francisco Javier Alsina.
The biotechnology firm has two highly promising molecules in its pipeline to treat stroke and other diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) – Ox-01 and Ox-02.
With this funding, the company will carry out formulation and preclinical trials with in vivo testing on Ox-02 in order to determine safe dosage for the first testing in humans and assess the safety profile.
“It will allow us to prepare to start phase III clinical trials on Ox-01, a drug candidate that has already proven to increase the number of patients with no side effects after a stroke,” says Carlos Lurigados, co-founder and CEO of FreeOx Biotech. “We’re looking for investors and/or licensors for a Series B round to complete clinical development and authorisation to commercialise the product on the main markets in the world.”
In the first quarter of 2019, FreeOx will receive scientific advisory services from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) geared towards validating pending clinical development and getting authorisation to market Ox-01 initially in Europe.
