Company profile
Industry Sector: Pharmaceuticals (Biopharma, or Biotechnology)
AfaSci, Inc, a private holding group based in the San Francisco Bay Area with these subsidiary companies: AfaSci Therapeutics (a C corporation) focusing on clinical drug development, AfaSci Research Laboratories (an S corporation) conducting preclinical research combined with providing contract research services on demand, and AfaSci Instruments (an LLC corporation to be registered) commercializing device products for research and in vivo drug screening. These well-integrated business model has enabled AfaSci to be self-sustained over the past two decades.
To accelerate clinical development, AfaSci Therapeutics now seeks investment and partnering/out-licensing opportunities to conduct clinical Phase II proof of concept studies on AFA-281 in patients with chronic pain and epilepsy. We expect AfaSci Therapeutics would exit via M&A upon Phase II study success in 3 years.
Company Profile
Our multidisciplinary team has been conducting phenotypic drug discovery inhouse and now is advancing our lead CNS program in multiple indications. We are focusing on our orally available small molecule therapeutic candidate, AFA-281, which has succesfully completed Phase I clinical trials. AFA-281 could treat chronic pain and seizures. These debilitating conditions affect approximately 100 million and 4 million people in the US, respectively. AfaSci’s lead therapeutic candidate is competitively differentiated from current medications and other drugs under development because it is a new chemical entity with a novel mechanism of action.
AFA-281 is a single small molecule dual inhibitor of specific ion channels and a pro-inflammatory enzyme. Inhibition of the overactivated ion channels can normalize neuronal excitability and restore nervous system functions, while inhibition of the pro-inflammatory enzyme enhances endogenous anti-inflammatory ability. The company also has a rich drug discovery pipeline for CNS indications. Our issued composition of matter patents in 16 countries were assigned exclusively to AfaSci Therapeutics.
AfaSci, Inc. is a pre-clinical stage, San Francisco Bay Area-based biotech that discovers and develops peptide and small molecule therapies for unmet needs in the fields of pain and neurology. [AS1]The company’s current focus has been on developing two therapeutic candidates for the treatment of neuropathic pain and neuroinflammatory pain. These debilitating conditions affect millions of people[AS2] in the United States and 7-8% of adults worldwide. AfaSci’s two therapeutic candidates are competitively differentiated as novel non-opioid [AS3]and non-steroidal analgesics. The company also has a drug discovery pipeline focused on Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, and sleep disorders.
AfaSci’s approach features several competitive advantages: [AS4]
1) Two therapeutic candidates for neuropathic and neuroinflammatory pain are ready for IND-enabling studies.
2) All pre-clinical research has been reviewed and supported by NIH grants, and validated across multiple peer-reviewed publications.
3) AfaSci has active collaborations with academic institutions including Stanford University, Harvard University, UCLA, UC Davis, and Kansas State University.
4) The company leverages aproprietary drug discovery platform for more effective target identification and efficient animal testing, in vivo pharmacology, and electrophysiology studies. [AS5]
AfaSci is now looking to accelerate IND-enabling studies for its two neuropathic and neuroinflammatory pain therapeutic candidates, and seeking opportunities with potential investors and business partners.[AS6]
[AS1]There needs to be a story around over-arching focus against which we can link everything else.
[AS2]Highlighting potential people impact is much better than market size in $ terms on a page like this.
[AS3]I took away non-addictive. Can you really say that if you are pre-clinical? (there are non-opioid legal / illegal drugs that are addictive?)
[AS4]I deleted one bullet that just read as you have regulatory approvals and DEA approval for certain controlled substance. But that isn’t differentiation—just that you are not breaking the law
[AS5]I don’t think this should be a big focus since investors and partners will really just care about #1, and #2-3 suggest that the work has scientific validity. #4 is just a means to an end from their perspective (I know it is more important for AfaSci internally as a generator of cash flow to sustain the business—but not something to highlight externally that much).
[AS6]Focus “the ask” on what is your 6-12 month goal. Everything else including end goal of acquisition is secondary.