Inotek Pharmaceuticals Corp., a leader in the development of innovative products for the treatment of glaucoma, today announced that it has closed on a $21 million financing. Proceeds from this financing will be used to advance Inotek’s lead product, trabodenoson, a novel eye drop that increases aqueous fluid outflow via the eye’s trabecular meshwork, through Phase 2 studies in glaucoma. Later this year, Inotek expects to initiate a Phase 2 study designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of trabodenoson when combined with latanoprost for the treatment of glaucoma patients whose intraocular pressure (IOP) is not well controlled by latanoprost therapy alone. All of the company’s existing investors, including Devon Park Bioventures, Rho Ventures, Care Capital, Medimmune Ventures and Pitango Venture Capital, participated in the financing. Concurrent with the equity financing, Inotek also secured $7 million in venture debt led by Horizon Technology Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: HRZN).
In a recently completed multi-dose Phase 2 study, trabodenoson, given as monotherapy, was shown to significantly reduce IOP in glaucoma patients, achieving efficacy in the range of the market leading prostaglandins, such as latanoprost.
“Based on the trabodenoson data that I have reviewed to date, this molecule has the potential to be an important addition to the tools we now have to reduce intraocular pressure, and ideally the attendant optic nerve neuropathy that leads to vision loss in patients with glaucoma,” said Jonathan Myers, MD, Associate Attending Surgeon on the Glaucoma Service at Wills Eye Hospital and Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Jefferson Medical College. “I am excited to see the company investing in additional studies which are needed to confirm this early promise, and to move the product closer to eventual availability for glaucoma patients in need.”
“Trabodenoson has already demonstrated very encouraging efficacy as a monotherapy as well as excellent safety and ocular tolerability, so we look forward to evaluating the drug’s efficacy and safety when combined with latanoprost as part of our next Phase 2 study,” said Rudolf Baumgartner, MD, Inotek’s Chief Medical Officer.”