• Funds to be used to obtain clinical proof of concept in two programs and to accelerate innovative pipeline focused on restoring immune tolerance to treat and potentially cure autoimmune diseases
• Initial clinical data for lead program, TPM203, in pemphigus vulgaris expected this year; second program, TPM502, planned to enter clinic by year end for celiac disease
• In strong support of Topas’ technology and programs, all existing investors - BioMedPartners, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, EMBL Ventures, Epidarex Capital, Evotec, Gimv and Vesalius Biocapital III - participated in the extension

Hamburg, Germany, 27 July 2021:
Evotec spin-off company Topas Therapeutics GmbH ("Topas"), a private biotechnology company developing immune tolerance-inducing drugs to treat and potentially cure a variety of autoimmune diseases, today announced that the Company has successfully extended its Series B round with an additional € 18 m (~$ 22 m) raised, bringing the total for this financing to € 40 m. All of Topas’ existing investors participated in the extension.

The funding will be used to obtain clinical proof of concept in two programs and to accelerate the Company’s proprietary pipeline based on the Topas Particle Conjugates technology platform. In addition to lead program, TPM203, which is continuing in clinical development for the treatment of pemphigus vulgaris, a second product candidate, TPM502, is now slated to enter the clinic for the treatment of celiac disease by the end of this year.

Topas will also be advancing several of its pre-clinical-stage programs, including one for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and one for Type I diabetes. Topas’ novel technology induces antigen-specific immune tolerance by harnessing the liver’s natural tolerization capabilities. The Company is utilizing this platform to develop products for autoimmune diseases where better treatment options and cures are urgently needed.

Dr Werner Lanthaler, Chief Executive Officer of Evotec, commented: “Topas Therapeutics was Evotec’s first spin-off company back in 2016. Since then, their team has made great progress with Topas’ nanoparticle approach to induce antigen-specific immune tolerance that opens up many exciting pathways to treat, for instance, autoimmune diseases. The extended Series B financing will give Topas the opportunity to further broaden the company’s exciting pipeline while moving ahead with the development of the existing project portfolio.”

Klaus Martin, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Topas, said: “We are excited by the trust our investors are showing by participating in this extended financing round, recognizing our progress and underpinning their great belief in the potential of Topas’ innovative technology and programs. This strong support is enabling us to accelerate our product development work and to advance several programs in parallel. We look forward to seeing the first clinical results from our platform, expected later this year.”

Topas has raised a total of € 58 m since its inception. The recent Series B extension is enabling the company to accelerate the development of various autoimmune disease programs.

Please follow this link to the full version of the press release from Topas Therapeutics.