iPierian, Inc., a South San Francisco, CA-based biopharmaceutical company using patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for drug discovery, has closed a $22m Series B equity financing.
The round, which brings the total amount of equity capital raised by the company to $54m since its inception in 2007, was led by new investor Google Ventures and includes participation from Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, ATEL Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Highland Capital Partners, MPM Capital and FinTech Global Capital.
iPierian initial focus is on neurodegenerative diseases, including spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease, in addition to a broad therapeutic area program intended for partnering in metabolic disease.
This financing will allow the company to advance its programs into the clinic and secure pharmaceutical partnerships.
In conjunction with the funding, Krishna Yeshwant, M.D., a partner at Google Ventures, will join iPierian’s Board of Directors. In addition, Michael C. Venuti, Ph.D., president and chief scientific officer since February 2010, will assume the role of chief executive officer, and will join the board.
FinSMEs
08/07/2010