BVCF supports anti-viral drug innovation
Since the discovery of RNA interference (RNAi), a natural mechanism for regulating gene expression, in the 1990s, billions of dollars have been invested by the world’s pharmaceutical giants in using this technology to develop therapeutic drugs. A particular use is to inhibit the expression of pathogenic viruses, such as HIV and the Hepatitis B virus (HBV).
"There are still no effective therapies for curing diseases such as HIV and HBV, which are caused by viruses," Zhi Yang, founder and managing partner of China life science-focused firm BVCF, tells AVCJ.
Yet R&D efforts to develop RNAi-based drugs continue unabated. Areas of focus include small interfering RNA (siRNA), a secondary product of RNAiwell-suited to using gene expression to combat infectious diseases in humans.
BVCF recently led a RMB45 million ($7.5 million) Series A round of funding for KunshanRiboQuark Pharmaceutical Technology, a siRNA R&D joint venture set up by China Suzhou Ribo Life Science and California-based Quark Pharmaceuticals in Kunshan, Jiangsu province. Other investors included SBI Incubation - part of Japan's SBI Group - Kunshan Industrial Technology Research Institute Investment and KunshanHongtu Hi-tech Venture Capital.
Yang has been following the development of Ribo Life Science, founded by Dr. Liang Zicai, for several years. Of the numerous overseas returnees involved in the development of new siRNA drugs in China, he believes that Ribo and Dr. Liang have a strong chance of success.
"Facing fierce competition from global giants, Dr. Liang has partnered with an overseas pharmaceutical firm that has been developed siRNA drugs for a long time, thereby enabling the Chinese firm to tap overseas high technology and experience," Yang adds.
Quark, part of Japan's SBI Group, has a rich pipeline of siRNA drug candidates, some of which are already at the clinical stage. The capital raised will be used to accelerate the development of RiboQuark's lead product, QPI-1007, an eye drug designed to treat angle closure glaucoma as well as loss of vision arising from optic nerve damage.
Patients with glaucoma may loss their vision within six months. QPI-1007, an RNAi-based drug, has the potential to control gene expression and thereby prevent loss of vision.
In China, as many as 28 million people have a genetic predisposition for angle closure glaucoma, with 9-10 million people suffering from the disease, Dr. Daniel Zurr, president and CEO of Quark, noted. The drug has been licensed from Quark to sell in China and several other countries.
The capital will also go towards the development of drugs for treating cancer, hepatitis and lung injury, as well as a cosmetic product for the prevention of hair loss as a result of chemotherapy and radiation.
BVCF made the investment from its third fund, which has a corpus of $200 million and is now about 50% deployed.
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