Drug company BrainCells Inc., focused on treating mood and anxiety disorders, said March 10 that it raised $30 million in a second round of funding.
MedImmune Ventures, a subsidiary of London-based AstraZeneca plc, joined previous investors Bay City Capital of San Francisco, Oxford Bioscience Partners of Boston, Technology Partners of Palo Alto, Pappas Ventures of Durham, N.C., and NeuroVentures of Charlottesville, Va., in the Series B round.
BrainCells, based in San Diego, said it will use the funding to continue clinical development of its lead drug candidate, BCI-540, a drug in-licensed from Mitsubishi Pharmaceutical Corp. and tested in more than 700 patients for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders, and to further expand its pipeline.
BrainCells has been screening experimental compounds against neural stem cells to identify which have the potential to promote the growth of new brain cells. The privately held company was formed in 2003 to capitalize on discoveries made at the Salk Institute.
As part of the recent financing, the company added William Bertrand Jr., senior vice president and general counsel of MedImmune, to its board.
, Heather Chambers