The Life Sciences Report
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WINTER 2021 THE LIFE SCIENCES REPORT Life Sciences Venture Wilson Sonsini Clients on the Front Lines Financings for of the COVID-19 Pandemic Wilson Sonsini Clients By Scott Murano, Partner (Palo Alto) We at the firm are extremely proud of which will lead the development our work with innovative life sciences efforts of emricasan, selected clinical The table on page 4 includes data companies, many of which are currently sites at two major medical centers in from life sciences transactions in working to address challenges associated the New York City metropolitan area which Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & with COVID-19. There are examples to conduct the study. Wilson Sonsini Rosati clients participated across the from numerous sectors—including represented Amerimmune in the second half of 2019 and the first half of biotech, digital health, medical devices, transaction. 2020. Specifically, the table compares— and pharmaceuticals—ranging from by industry segment—the number of companies developing and testing • AuraVax Therapeutics, a closings, the total amount raised, and treatments and prospective vaccines Houston-based biotech company the average amount raised per closing to those involved in manufacturing developing novel vaccines and across the two six-month periods. personal protective equipment, medical therapies to help patients defeat supplies, or other key components debilitating respiratory diseases Continued on page 4... needed to care for those who are such as COVID-19, entered into an experiencing illness. exclusive license option agreement with the University of Houston Below is a sampling of COVID-19-related with respect to the intellectual In This Issue client activity in which our firm has property covering a novel intranasal recently been involved: vaccine technology. Under the Wilson Sonsini Clients on the terms of the agreement, AuraVax Front Lines of the COVID-19 • Amerimmune, a research center has the option to exclusively license Pandemic .......................... Pages 1-3 and immunology laboratory with patents covering this technology. Life Sciences Venture a strong focus on identifying In addition, AuraVax entered into Financings for Wilson Sonsini underlying mechanisms of immune an exclusive license agreement Clients ........................... Pages 1, 4-5 disorders, and Histogen, a clinical- with Massachusetts General A Discussion with Cyrano stage therapeutics company focused Hospital (MGH) covering certain Therapeutics CEO Rick Geoffrion on developing therapeutics that IP and technology rights regarding About the Early Feasibility ignite the body’s natural process compositions and discoveries of Studies Program ............ Pages 6-8 to repair and maintain healthy liposomal STING agonists led by Five Mistakes Medical Device biological function, entered into Mei X. Wu, Ph.D., of the Wellman Start-Ups Make ............ Pages 9-10 a collaborative development and Center for Photomedicine at commercialization agreement MGH. The transaction bolsters USJMF and JSNC Host MedTech Emerging Growth to jointly develop emricasan, an the development of AuraVax’s Companies 2020 Virtual orally active caspase inhibitor, lead COVID-19 intranasal vaccine Roadshow ..................... Pages 11-12 for the treatment of COVID-19. and strengthens its platform for An Interview with Additionally, Histogen has received therapeutic development targeting Dr. Wasim Malik of Investigational New Drug (IND) a range of viral infections. Wilson Iaso Ventures ................Pages 13-16 approval from the FDA to initiate a Sonsini is advising AuraVax Select Life Sciences Client Phase 1 study of emricasan in mild Therapeutics on business advisory Highlights ..................... Pages 17-24 COVID-19 patients to assess safety and corporate legal matters, and tolerability. Amerimmune, and represented the company Continued on page 2... WINTER 2021 THE LIFE SCIENCES REPORT Wilson Sonsini Clients on the Front Lines of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Continued from page 1) in connection with the above in the United States. In addition, active COVID-19 in individuals with agreements. CorVent announced an agreement or without symptoms, and in adults with Siemens Healthineers for U.S. and children two years of age or • The Canadian COVID Coalition, a distribution of the RESPOND-19 older. The test—the first of its kind to group of companies that have joined Ventilator to their network of be granted an EUA—will help reduce forces in the war on COVID-19, has hospital, healthcare system, and the spread of COVID-19 through volunteered its time and resources government customers. Wilson rapid self-detection, providing to identify the nanobodies that are Sonsini handles all of CorVent’s users with real-time results in the activated in the immune response corporate work and advised on the safety of their own homes, enabling against COVID-19. The Coalition company’s seed financing in May self-isolation and patient education is offering free, non-exclusive, and 2020. on escalation of medical care. As limited exclusive licenses to foster such, it provides an essential new rapid development of diagnostic and • Density, a start-up building AI- tool to help combat the COVID-19 therapeutic tools to help neutralize powered, people-counting infrared pandemic. Wilson Sonsini assisted COVID-19’s impact. The group has sensors, closed a $51 million Series Ellume in their discussion with the published 51 antibodies that show C financing round. Kleiner Perkins FDA and is working with Ellume to promising ability to bind to the led the round, with contributions help commercialize and distribute COVID-19 virus by attaching to from 01 Advisors, Upfront Ventures, their COVID-19 Home Test. its crown-like spikes, which could Founders Fund, Ludlow Ventures, result in neutralizing the virus by Launch, LPC Ventures, and • Everlywell, a leading digital health preventing it from invading human individual investors Alex Rodriguez, company that received the first cells. Other Coalition members Alex Davis, Kevin and Julia Hartz, FDA Emergency Use Authorization include Novobind, Cedarlane, and Cyan and Scott Banister. The of its kind for its COVID-19 Test SignalChem, and Natural Products infusion brings the start-up’s total Home Collection Kit in May 2020, Canada. Wilson Sonsini is advising raised to over $74 million, following announced an oversubscribed the Coalition on IP strategy to $23 million in previous funding. Series D financing of $175 million. ensure that the resulting products In many ways, Density’s products New investors participating in the are accessible to all countries around were tailor-made for a global health round include funds and accounts the world. crisis, as cities around the world managed by BlackRock, The have imposed limits on businesses Chernin Group (TCG), Foresite • CorVent Medical, a Coridea regarding the number of customers Capital, Greenspring Associates, portfolio company focused on they allow in. Density co-founder Lux Capital, Morningside Ventures, developing versatile, reusable, and CEO Andrew Farah says the and Portfolia, as well as existing lifesaving ventilators, announced $51 million will be put toward investors Goodwater Capital, that the FDA has issued an addressing “unprecedented demand” Highland Capital Partners, and Next Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from offices, manufacturers, Coast Ventures. This investment for primary critical care use of the grocery stores, industrial plants, brings the total capital raised by company’s RESPOND-19 Ventilator, and governments trying to abide by the company to over $250 million. which is designed for rapid capacity limits during the pandemic. Everlywell plans to use the funds expansion of critical care ventilation Wilson Sonsini represented Density to expand its virtual care offerings, capacity to allow hospitals to treat in the transaction. scale its testing and infrastructure, more patients suffering from acute drive clinical research and disease respiratory distress syndrome • Ellume, a digital diagnostics management through testing, (ARDS) during times of greatest company, announced that its rapid, and grow its national leadership need. The surge support system is at-home COVID-19 antigen test position in the at-home testing optimized for long-term storage and has been granted Emergency Use market. Wilson Sonsini represented ensures cost-efficient healthcare Authorization (EUA) from the Everlywell in the transaction. preparedness. With EUA granted, FDA. The Ellume COVID-19 Home the RESPOND-19 Ventilator is Test will be available without a • Gauss Surgical, the leading now available for commercial use prescription for the detection of developer of computer vision Continued on page 3... 2 WINTER 2021 THE LIFE SCIENCES REPORT Wilson Sonsini Clients on the Front Lines of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Continued from page 2) applications for healthcare, and program. The award will help scale diagnostics and biosurveillance Cellex, a leading biotechnology Mammoth Biosciences’ CRISPR- technologies for the Department company specializing in point-of- based DETECTR BOOST™ test of Defense. Under the program, care diagnostic testing, announced onto high-throughput automated Mammoth will leverage its an exclusive partnership to launch platforms in commercial labs DETECTR platform to detect a rapid, at-home and point-of-care for COVID-19 diagnostics at emerging biological threats. COVID-19 antigen test. Cellex, an accelerated rate, increasing which was the first company to access to accurate tests with faster Wilson Sonsini