Biotechnology company Auxilius Pharma has announced a $4 million Series A financing round to accelerate the development of a chronic stable angina treatment. 

AUX-001 has been designed by Auxilius as a once-daily formulation, designed to treat and prevent chronic stable angina. The candidate could become the first new innovative oral therapy for chronic stable angina in the US since 2006.  

The capital was raised from companies including ff.VC ASI II, NIF ASI and NanoGroup, all EU-based venture capital institutions investing in emerging biotech projects. The financing will support Auxilius’s completion of pharmaceutical optimisation and a Phase Ib clinical trial.  

Results from a first-in-human Phase I pharmacokinetic study demonstrated AUX-001 is a once-daily pharmacokinetic profile with a half-life exceeding nine hours and improves safety and tolerability compared to tradition immediate-release nicorandil. 

In 2022, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved AUX-001’s suitability for the cost-effective and predictable 505(b)(2) regulatory pathway during a pre-IND meeting. 

If AUX-001 is approved, Auxilius has said it will look to obtain multiple additional indications, including for use in patients with frequent comorbid conditions such as coronary microvascular disease and heart failure. 

Bruno Quinney, Content Team, DDW