Takeda-backed cardiovascular disease specialist Cardurion Pharma has a new investor and $300 million in cash to play with after Bain Capital joined the supporting cast.
The private investment will see Bain join a lineup of investors that includes Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Polaris Partners, according to a Wednesday statement.
Cardurion was launched by a group of 12 Takeda executives back in 2017 to try to develop new therapies for heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases. The new biotech emerged with lab space, development resources and licenses to a bunch of Takeda assets.
The pipeline includes a PDE9 inhibitor called CRD-733 that Cardurion picked up in a licensing deal with Astellas and a CaMKII inhibitor, a drug type that has shown promise in treating arrhythmias and heart failure.
Cardurion, which is based in Boston with facilities in Shonan, Japan, as well, said the Bain investment will support the advancement of the pipeline and an expansion of the team. The PDE9 inhibitor is heading into a phase 2 trial in heart failure while the CaMKII inhibitor candidate will be advanced to human studies.
The cardiovascular-focused biotech was founded by former Merck executive Michael Mendelsohn, M.D., who currently serves as chairman. CEO Peter Lawrence joined as CEO in March 2020. The biotech has continued to poach talent from Takeda, with Chris Morabito joining as chief medical officer in July 2020.
Bain Managing Director Adam Koppel, M.D., Ph.D., and Principal Nicholas Downing, M.D., will join the Cardurion board as part of the investment.