Andera Partners leads the US$ 83 million Series A financing of Evommune, a biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies in the area of chronic inflammation, particularly in dermatological conditions. Additional syndicate members included LSP, Pivotal bioVentures Partners, and additional US investors,.
Evommune was founded in 2020 by industry veterans and former senior leaders at Dermira, a dermatology company acquired by Eli Lilly in 2020, , including Luis Peña, president and chief executive officer, Eugene A. Bauer, MD, chief medical officer and Hans Hofland, PhD, senior vice president, research. The company is using the skin as the lens to uncover new approaches for accelerating the development of vital medicines across immunology with a focus on inflammation. By utilizing a novel screening platform, Evommune has identified differentiated molecules that have a greater probability of being effective in treating patients with chronic inflammatory conditions.
“We are very pleased to be able to support Evommune and its team in this new phase of growth. We have known the key members of the team for more than three decades and have seen them demonstrate great expertise in the identification and development of innovative compounds, particularly in dermatology. We are convinced by the innovative potential of their current pipeline that can potentially address major unmet medical needs for the benefit of patients who do not have a satisfactory solution today,” commented Gilles Nobécourt, Partner in the Life Sciences team at Andera Partners. “The development of a unique range of products for dermatology and more broadly for chronic inflammation will allow Evommune to position itself as a key player in this field.”
Evommune has four investigational compounds in development. Three of the compounds stem from an exclusive agreement with Dermira, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company and include IRAK4/TrkA, a small molecule that broadly inhibits innate inflammation; RORγt, a small molecule addressing Th17 mediated inflammation; and MRGPRX2, a small molecule to treat chronic pruritus (itch). The fourth compound is a PKCtheta inhibitor which could have broad utility across a spectrum of immune-mediated, inflammatory diseases and came to Evommune through an exclusive partnership with Axcelead Drug Discovery Partners, Inc.