Category: Archives 2016

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, December 21, 2016 – Appili Therapeutics Inc. (“Appili”), an anti-infective drug development company, announced today it raised $2,151,000 in its over-subscribed private placement financing. Participants in this capital raise included current Appili investors such as Innovacorp, as well as new individual and institutional investors. Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance its lead product candidate, a taste-masked antibiotic designed to treat anaerobic infections like Clostridium difficile, into clinical trials. In addition, the Company will advance the development of a novel class of antibiotics targeting drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria and evaluate opportunities to add high potential anti-infective programs to its pipeline.

“We appreciate the support and confidence our investors have in our strategy to build a pipeline of products that fit with our balanced-risk portfolio approach,” said Kevin Sullivan, CEO of Appili Therapeutics. “We continue to seek new programs that complement this balanced-risk approach with a mix of near-term revenue programs along with early stage programs that have the potential to fundamentally change how we treat infectious disease.”

“In a very short period of time, Appili has made significant progress with their strategy to identify and develop improved anti-infective therapies, and we look forward to supporting their upcoming clinical trial,” said Dr. Lidija Marušić, life sciences investment manager at Innovacorp, Nova Scotia’s early stage venture capital organization, and member of Appili’s Board of Directors.

“We are thrilled by the strong investor interest in this financing, which validates Appili’s strategy, science and development programs,” said Brian Bloom, president of Bloom Burton & Co., a healthcare-specialized investment bank, and chair of Appili’s Board of Directors.

About Appili Therapeutics

Appili is dedicated to identifying, acquiring and advancing novel therapeutics for infectious disease. The Company has two anti-infective programs, ATI-1501 and ATI-1503, in its pipeline. ATI-1501, a taste-masked treatment for anaerobic infections, including Clostridium difficile, has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA. Appili plans to take ATI-1501 into clinical trials in 2017. Appili’s second product, ATI-1503, is a novel antibiotic with broad potential to treat deadly Gram-negative infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae. These drug-resistant infections have been identified by the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) as posing the highest threat to human health. For more information visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, October 3, 2016 – Appili Therapeutics Inc., an anti-infective pharmaceutical development company, announced today that Kimberly Stephens, CPA, has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Stephens will be providing key financial and operational leadership to Appili to help drive its growth.

“We are pleased to welcome Ms. Stephens to the Appili executive management team,” said Kevin Sullivan, CEO of Appili Therapeutics. “Her significant financial expertise and insight into the biopharmaceutical industry will bolster our growing scientific pipeline as we take our first product, a taste-masked treatment for Clostridium difficile infection, into clinical trials.”

“With our first clinical trial on the horizon, it’s an exciting time to be joining Appili and I look forward to being a key contributor to the company’s future growth and acquisition success,” said Ms. Stephens. “I am impressed by Appili’s strategic focus on treating infectious diseases, and it is my privilege to join such a dynamic team of dedicated professionals.”

Ms. Stephens brings over 15 years of financial management experience in senior financial positions with private and public companies. Most recently, she served as CFO of Immunovaccine Inc. (TSX: IMV; OTCQX: IMMVF) from 2011-2016, where she managed the raising of more than $40 million through equity financings and government grants. Prior to joining Immunovaccine Inc., Ms. Stephens served as director of finance for the Canadian subsidiary of Germanischer Lloyd. She has also been the director of finance for SolutionInc, and started her career as an audit manager in the assurance and advisory group at PwC. Ms. Stephens holds a bachelor of commerce degree from Mount Allison University and is a chartered professional accountant (CPA).

Ms. Stephens will continue to serve Immunovaccine as Chief Financial Officer through December 2016 while the company conducts its ongoing process of identifying and transitioning her successor. About Appili Therapeutics Appili is dedicated to identifying, acquiring and advancing novel therapeutics for infectious disease. The company has two anti-infective programs, ATI-1501 and ATI-1503, in its pipeline. ATI-1501, a taste-
masked treatment for Clostridium difficile infection, has been granted orphan drug designation by the FDA. Appili plans to take ATI-1501 into clinical trials in 2017. Appili’s second product, ATI-1503, is a novel antibiotic with broad potential to treat deadly Gram-negative infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae.

These drug-resistant infections have been identified by the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) as posing the highest threat to human health. For more information visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com.

About Appili Therapeutics

Appili is dedicated to identifying, acquiring and advancing novel therapeutics for infectious disease. The Company has two anti-infective programs, ATI-1501 and ATI-1503, in its pipeline. ATI-1501, a taste-masked treatment for anaerobic infections, including Clostridium difficile, has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA. Appili plans to take ATI-1501 into clinical trials in 2017. Appili’s second product, ATI-1503, is a novel antibiotic with broad potential to treat deadly Gram-negative infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae. These drug-resistant infections have been identified by the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) as posing the highest threat to human health. For more information visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com.

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, May 25, 2016 – Appili Therapeutics Inc., an anti-infective pharmaceutical development company, announced today it has raised $3,271,000 to advance the research and development of its anti-infective drug candidates and open a medicinal chemistry lab in Halifax.

“Completing this seed round of investment provides us with a solid base from which we can accelerate our growth,” said Kevin Sullivan, CEO of Appili Therapeutics. “I am proud of the team we have built to date and, with the addition of talented scientists and research capacity, we are ramping up our capacity to develop real solutions that address the growing health crisis posed by drug-resistant infections.”

Appili secured $1,764,000 from a number of private investors and $500,000 from Innovacorp, Nova Scotia’s early stage venture capital organization. Appili is also receiving support from the federal government.

The Government of Canada, through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and National Research Council Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP), is providing $1,009,000 in combined support. ACOA is contributing $500,000 through a Business Development Program (BPD) repayable contribution and an additional $100,000 focused on productivity and business skills. In addition, the company will receive up to $409,000 in financial assistance and advisory services from NRC-IRAP to support this initiative.

“The Government of Canada is pleased to support Appili as they embark on the next phase of testing and development for this potentially global-scale, ground-breaking antibiotic. Investments in new therapeutics such as these play a significant role in the ongoing development of our research and innovation capacity,” said the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for ACOA and NRC-IRAP.

“Appili is led by an experienced team of industry experts,” said Dr. Lidija Marušić, life sciences investment manager at Innovacorp. “We are confident that the company, with support from Bloom Burton, is well positioned to combat drug resistant superbugs with its next generation of antibiotics.”

“As a co-founding shareholder and incubator, Bloom Burton & Co. is pleased to see Appili secure the start-up capital needed to advance development of its two antibiotic programs and move towards human clinical studies,” said Brian Bloom, chairman of the Appili Board of Directors and president of Bloom Burton & Co., a healthcare-specialized investment banking firm based in Toronto.

About Appili Therapeutics

Appili is dedicated to identifying, acquiring and advancing novel therapeutics for infectious disease. The company has two anti-infective programs, ATI-1501 and ATI-1503, in its pipeline. ATI-1501, a taste-masked treatment for Clostridium difficile infection, has just been granted orphan drug designation by the FDA and Appili plans to take it into clinical trials in 2017. Appili’s second product, ATI-1503, is a novel antibiotic with broad potential to treat deadly Gram-negative infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae. These drug-resistant infections have been identified by the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) as posing the highest threat to human health. Appili is co-founded and backed by the healthcare investment bank Bloom Burton & Co. For more information visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com.

Bloom Burton Development Corp. is the founding entity of incubated companies, which includes Appili Therapeutics Inc. Any references made to Bloom Burton or Bloom Burton and Co. in this article is intended to be Bloom Burton Development Corp. and not any other entity within the Bloom Burton group of companies.

Photos are available upon request.

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, April 12, 2016 – Appili Therapeutics Inc., an anti-infective pharmaceutical development company, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation for ATI-1501, a taste-masked reformulation of metronidazole with the potential to effectively treat Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in children.

CDI is one of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s most urgent antibiotic-resistant bacterial threats. CDI affects over half a million Canadians and Americans each year. It reoccurs in 83,000 patients and is responsible for 29,000 deaths annually. The incidence of CDI in children has been steadily increasing over recent years, and thus a taste-masked metronidazole formulation is urgently needed for this population.

“The bitter metronidazole tablet is highly unpalatable for most children, so ATI-1501 has the potential to fundamentally improve compliance rates for these patients who are in need of a safe and effective treatment for CDI,” said Kevin Sullivan, CEO of Appili Therapeutics.

The FDA Orphan Drug Act provides orphan status to new drugs that are defined as those intended for the safe and effective treatment, diagnosis, or prevention of rare diseases that affect less than 200,000 people in the United States. This orphan drug designation provides Appili with several benefits, including seven years of marketing exclusivity upon approval of ATI-1501, reduced FDA application and administration fees and tax credits for clinical research in the U.S.

“In just 3 months, we received orphan drug designation from the FDA,” continued Mr. Sullivan. “Having this quick turnaround is an indication of the high quality of the regulatory team we have built, and an important step on our path to becoming the first company to offer an approved treatment for C. difficile designed specifically for children affected by this serious infection.”

About Appili Therapeutics

Appili is dedicated to identifying, acquiring and advancing novel therapeutics in the area of infectious disease and has commenced development on two anti-infective programs, while continuing its search to acquire additional high quality anti-infective programs at all stages of development. The company plans to take its lead drug candidate, ATI-1501, a potential treatment for C. difficile infection, into clinical trials by 2017. Appili’s second product, ATI-1503, is a novel antibiotic with the potential to treat deadly infections such as Klebsiella pneumoniae. These drug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections have been identified by the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) as posing the highest threat to human health. Appili is co-founded and backed by the life-science/healthcare investment bank Bloom Burton & Co. For more information visit www.AppiliTherapeutics.com.