A SCOTTISH biotech company is set to transform the treatment of Haemophilia A after securing new investment of £2 million.
ProFactor Pharma Ltd (PFP), which is based at the Roslin Innovation Centre outside Edinburgh, completed its latest funding round led by the investment syndicate Kelvin Capital and supported by Ingenza, another biotech firm, and the Scottish Investment Bank, the investment arm of Scottish Enterprise.
The Kelvin Capital syndicate, led by directors John McNicol and Angus Hay, represents private investors in the UK, Europe and the US.
Haemophilia is a condition that impairs how blood clots and can lead to prolonged bleeding.
There are thought to be more than 400,000 Haemophilia A sufferers worldwide, but only 151,000 are currently receive treatment with recombinant human factor Vlll (rhFVIII).
Its annual sales are $5.4 billion (£4.3bn), but there is a huge undersupply and significant unmet needs in other markets excluded from rhFVIII access because of the current high product costs.
PFP’s new funding will be used for process optimisation and toxicology studies to enter clinical trials after 12 months as it continues to develop low cost rhFVIII for treating Haemophilia A. The company has developed a proprietary cell line estimated to be capable of producing it at significantly higher yields than the industry standard when combined with a production process employing innovative disposable single use technology.
Jaymin Amin from PFP said the global market was vast, but supplies limited: “Our patented process delivers rhFVIII indistinguishable from a market leading product, but due to the higher yield and lower cost of our product we are in an extremely strong position to lead in the massively undersupplied markets of Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia.”
McNicol said: “ProFactor Pharma is set to disrupt a market with lower cost and higher quality treatments for 400,000 sufferers of Haemophilia A across the world. Current manufacturers only supply 30% of the market with a higher cost treatment so the opportunity for PFP is really significant and runs into billions of dollars.
“The disease affects one in 5000 male births which also means that the number of patients requiring treatment is growing annually.”
Ingenza MD, Ian Fotheringham, said “ProFactor Pharma’s continued advancement illustrates the enormous global impact possible from strategic SME partnerships within the Scottish and UK biotech communities.”
Scottish Investment Bank director, Kerry Sharp, added: “We are delighted to continue our support for ProFactor Pharma.
“Clearly, there is a substantial global market for the company’s product and this phase of its development puts it on a pathway to full commercialisation.”
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