BioCentury
ARTICLE | Company News

Avalon Ventures, GSK launch first newco

November 23, 2013 2:28 AM UTC

Avalon Ventures and GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE:GSK; NYSE:GSK) launched celiac disease company Sitari Pharmaceuticals Corp. (La Jolla, Calif.) with $10 million in a series A round and R&D support. The virtual newco, which is developing small molecule inhibitors of transglutaminase 2 ( TGM2; TG2), is the first to be launched under an April deal between Avalon and GSK to fund and launch up to 10 early stage companies. Sitari expects to nominate a clinical candidate in three to four years, at which point GSK will have an option to acquire the newco for about $40 million. TGM2 is an enzyme that catalyzes a reaction with gluten in the gut that drives the pathogenic autoimmune response underlying celiac disease. ...