Neuraptive Therapeutics Raises $19.5M, Expands Management Team

A Philadelphia biotechnology company working on therapeutics and medical products for patients impacted by peripheral nerve injuries has raised $19.5 million from private investors.

The equity financing was disclosed in documents Center City-based Neuraptive Therapeutics filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Company officials were not available to comment on the stock sale. Neuraptive is led by Robert Radie, who was previously CEO of two other local life sciences companies: Zyla Life Sciences (formerly Egalet) and Topaz Pharmaceuticals. The company was founded in Lafayette, Colorado, in 2016 by health care entrepreneurs David Jackson and Gino DiSciullo. Jackson is a member of the company’s board of directors.

The company did announce Tuesday it has converted all of its previous debt into equity, with more than $7.5M in notes converted into preferred shares as a result of the company achieving certain undisclosed triggering criteria. Neuraptive now has no outstanding debt.

Neuraptive also said Tuesday it has hired one new executive and promoted another.

Evan Tzanis, who has served as the company’s executive vice president of research and development since 2019, was promoted to the expanded role of chief operating officer and executive vice president.

In addition, the company has hired Dr. Seth Schulman, previously a clinical researcher at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), as its chief medical officer. He had previously been consulting with the company. Earlier in his career, Schulman was a pediatric nephrologist at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and an associate professor of pediatrics and surgery with the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

Neuraptive raised $1 million in seed financing in 2017. A year later, the company raised $11.5 million in a Series A financing led by New Rhein Healthcare Investors. Ben Franklin Technology Partners also participated in the round.

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