Surf Bio’s polymer-based drug delivery platform has caught the eye of some storied VCs. Needing cash to fund development of an ultra-rapid insulin program based on the technology, Surf Bio has reeled in $16 million in a seed round co-led by Breakout Ventures and Perceptive Xontogeny Venture (PXV) Fund.
California-based Surf Bio is built upon drug stabilization technology developed in the Stanford University laboratory of materials scientist Eric Appel, Ph.D. Working with collaborators at the lab, Joseph Mann and Caitlin Maikawa studied excipients designed to reduce the aggregation of insulin and, in doing so, clear a barrier to the development of ultra-rapid insulin that more closely mimics the natural bodily function.
In a paper published in 2020, the researchers found their ultrafast-absorbing insulin lispro hit peak action at around nine minutes in pigs, compared to 25 minutes for Eli Lilly’s Humalog. If translated into humans, the faster kinetics could help to improve glucose control and reduce the burden on diabetics.
VCs see promise in the idea. Some of the cash came from PXV Fund, which is led by former Sarepta CEO Chris Garabedian. PXV Fund enables Perceptive to make early-stage investments in life science startups, including those seeded and incubated at Garabedian’s Xontogeny accelerator.
Surf Bio will use the money to advance its lead insulin program while exploring other applications of the technology, which could span diabetes, oncology, infectious diseases and gene therapy. With in vitro and in vivo data in hand, Surf Bio claims to have “generated significant interest from partners.”
Bryan Mazlish, co-founder and CEO, set out why the technology is attracting interest in a statement.
“Our technology enhances the stability of a broad set of biologics including peptides, vaccines and monoclonal antibodies to retain or optimize desired pharmaceutical properties at higher concentrations and higher temperatures,” Mazlish said. “This should enable favorably differentiated products that create new opportunities for how biologics are delivered in the future.”