Xention establishes spin-off company
Overactive bladder programme to be run by Provesica while cardiology remains with Xention
Xention, a Cambridge, UK-based biopharmaceutical firm specialising in the discovery and development of ion channel-modulating drugs, has restructured following its receipt of £8m in private equity funding in November. The firm now plans to focus product development on cardiology medicines.
To fulfil this aim, Xention has demerged its overactive bladder (OAB) programme into a newly established company, Provesica Ltd, which is separately owned by Xention’s shareholders.
Provesica will control all rights to Xention’s TRPV1 antagonist, XEN-D0501, which has successfully completed Phase l development. Simultaneously, Provesica has raised £4m of new equity finance to fund a Phase ll study of XEN-D0501 in patients with OAB.
As part of the deal, Xention has a new holding company, Xention Pharma Ltd, although r&d will continue to be managed by Xention Ltd, its wholly owned operating subsidiary. Xention will focus on developing new drugs for cardiac arrhythmia while continuing its ion channel discovery research programmes across multiple therapeutic fields. The firm will also provide certain services to Provesica, including the support of its OAB programme.
‘Cardiac arrhythmia and overactive bladder represent two very different pharmaceutical business fields. Spinning out our OAB drug development programme into a separate business vehicle will allow Xention to focus its product development on our two potential breakthrough programmes in atrial fibrillation,’ said Tim Brears, Xention’s chief executive.
