Skin Is In With Biomedical Investors
This article was originally published in Start Up
Executive Summary
Unique market dynamics and plenty of exit options are attracting investors to dermatology. Profiles of Aclaris Therapeutics, Alexar Therapeutics, Rogne Bioscience, and Scioderm.
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Aclaris Therapeutics Inc.
Aclaris Therapeutics Inc. is developing a topical treatment for seborrheic keratosis, a type of benign growth typically described as a cross between a lesion and a tumor. As envisioned, the preparation that the company now calls A-101 might not only provide an alternative to surgery, but also may be straightforward enough to be applied by non-physician staff.
Scioderm Inc.
Scioderm Inc. thinks it can break the long string of failures in wound healing with an experimental therapy called Zorblisa, which it is developing as a topical treatment for epidermolysis bullosa, a rare connective tissue disease that causes skin to tear easily. The FDA has designated it a breakthrough therapy; if Phase III data look good, Scioderm could bring Zorblisa to market in the US and Europe by the end of 2016.
Rogne Bioscience Inc.
The cost/efficacy argument over high-priced biological treatments for psoriasis has created a market opportunity that Rogne Bioscience Inc. intends to exploit. Instead of developing another injectable protein like so many others, the start-up is developing a topical formulation of a human peptide that it describes as “the off-switch for inflammation.”