smartbax secures 4.7 million euros in Pre-Series A funding for the further development of a novel antibiotic up to preclinical stage
Lead candidate against a novel target in Gram-negative bacteria has already been validated in infection models
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smartbax, a biotech company developing next-generation antibiotics, announced the successful first closing of its €4.7 million Pre-Series A financing round. The round was led by new investors Anobis Asset and Bayern Kapital, with participation from UnternehmerTUM Funding for Innovators as well as existing investors HTGF - High-Tech Gründerfonds and Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund (BIVF). A second tranche for this financing round remains open to new investors.
smartbax will use the fresh capital to further develop its proprietary pipeline of small molecule antibiotics designed to overcome bacterial resistance with innovative approaches and novel mechanisms of action. The most advanced candidate is an inhibitor that blocks a previously unused step in the synthesis of lipopolysaccharides (LPS), important structural components of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria. This new inhibitor has already demonstrated its efficacy in vivo, including against multi-resistant strains. It shows potential for oral application and is now to be taken through to preclinical development.
In parallel, smartbax is further developing its platform of small molecule activators of bacterial hydrolases. In contrast to traditional antibiotics, which inhibit bacterial functions, these compounds stimulate hydrolase activity, causing the bacteria to digest themselves from the inside. This innovative mechanism of action has not yet been exploited in commercial antibiotics and offers a promising strategy to overcome established resistance mechanisms. smartbax has identified two classes of activators that act against different target structures in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Both have promising drug properties, can eliminate biofilms and do not cause the development of resistance. With the current funding, the company will further develop these activators to select lead candidates and demonstrate in vivo proof of concept.
"Small molecule antibiotics remain one of the most effective tools in the fight against the rapidly growing threat of antimicrobial resistance. smartbax is currently the only German biotech company exclusively dedicated to the development of this critical class of compounds. We are proud to be advancing complementary approaches, both with a classical inhibitor against a novel target and with enzyme activators that exploit an entirely new mechanism of action in the antibiotic space," said Dr. Robert Macsics, CEO of smartbax. "Our programs focus on WHO priority pathogens and aim to create new treatment options for critically ill patients who currently have limited options. We are very pleased to have this strong consortium of investors who share our commitment and will work with us to address this urgent public health threat."
Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.
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