CTI Life Sciences Fund

CTI Life Sciences Fund is excited to share that Fund II portfolio company, Find Therapeutics, has received FDA clearance to advance its re-myelinating drug candidate, FTX-101, into clinic.

CTI Life Sciences Fund is thrilled to welcome Dr. Alan Rigby as the new CEO of Epitopea, a CTI portfolio company! With a distinguished track record in biotech leadership and a profound commitment to advancing innovative cancer therapies, Dr. Rigby is poised to drive Epitopea's mission forward. We look forward to witnessing the impactful strides Epitopea will make under his guidance. Join us in congratulating Dr. Rigby and Epitopea on this exciting new chapter! https://lnkd.in/ecG6n3N3

Please join CTI Life Sciences Fund in welcoming Ron Cooper as the CEO of enGene, a CTI portfolio company. We are excited to have Mr. Cooper leading enGene as the company prepares for its next stage of growth. enGene is currently studying EG-70, a best-in-class non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) treatment, in an ongoing multi-cohort Phase 2 study (LEGEND). Mr. Cooper most recently served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Albireo Pharma, a fully integrated global commercial biopharmaceutical company that Ipsen acquired in 2023. While at Albireo Pharma, Mr. Cooper took the company public, created a new corporate strategy, and guided Bylvay® to the market. Earlier in his career, he spent nearly 30 years at Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) in roles of increasing responsibility in sales, marketing, and general management, most recently serving as President of Europe. While at BMS, he played a leadership role in numerous successful product launches. https://lnkd.in/gumXGCF7

Exciting news for CTI Life Sciences Fund! AstraZeneca has successfully closed the acquisition of Amolyt Pharma, a CTI portfolio company. Under the terms of the definitive agreement, AstraZeneca has acquired all of Amolyt Pharma’s outstanding shares for a total consideration of up to $1.05 billion on a cash and debt-free basis, including a $800 million upfront at deal closing. CTI Life Sciences Fund is honored to be part of this exciting journey with Amolyt Pharma and our co-investors (Sofinnova Partners, Intermediate Capital Group (ICG), and abrdn (previously Tekla)). We are also delighted that we contributed to the advancement of eneboparatide (AZP-3601), a potential best-in-class treatment for hypoparathyroidism. https://lnkd.in/eRr-9_Kq

CTI Life Sciences Fund's Managing Partners, Laurence Rulleau,PhD, and Youssef Bennani attended #IC24 (Invest Canada '24) in Montreal this week. We want to thank the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) for hosting this incredible event and all the sponsors for making it possible. The event highlighted a critical insight from the BDC's 2024 report: the Life Sciences VC sector has consistently outperformed ICT and ECT in performance. The latest data showed a 10-year Gross IRR of 22.3%. We want to give a big shout-out to our industry peers for all their successes. We also attended the "Blueprint for Growth: Quebec's Strategic Approach, presented by Investissement Québec" event with representation from Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Fondaction and BDC Capital (Canada). Their tireless support transformed the life sciences sector in Canada into a vibrant and globally competitive industry. CTI Life Sciences Fund is excited about the future of our industry and will continue to do our part to contribute to its growth.

CTI Life Sciences Fund had our annual general meeting (AGM) last week on May 22nd. We want to thank all of our LPs and industry colleagues for a day of exchanges of insights and laughter. We also had the privilege to host two exciting panels, including: - An academic panel moderated by CTI's Managing Partner, Youssef Bennani, with participation from Perreault Claude (Scientific Founder of Epitopea), Jean-Claude Tardif (Scientific Founder of DalCor Pharmaceuticals ), and Michel Bouvier (CEO of Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer of the Université de Montréal ) - A CEO panel moderated by CTI's Managing Partner, Laurence Rulleau,PhD, with participation from Alan Rigby (CEO of Epitopea), Roberto Bellini (Former CEO of Bellus Health), Thierry Abribat (CEO of Amolyt Pharma) and Sean A. MacDonald (CEO of Domain Therapeutics) We want to thank all the attendees, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Investissement Québec, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Teralys Capital, BDC Capital (Canada), adMare BioInnovations, Desjardins, RBCx, CIBC Innovation, Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie du Québec (MEIE), Novateur Ventures Inc. and Wendsley Lake Corporation for their participation. We look forward to hosting everyone next year!

ATTENTION! Domain Therapeutics, a CTI Life Sciences Fund portfolio company, is looking for a Clinical Trial Manager to join the growing team in Montreal, Quebec. Join Domain Therapeutics and help advance its best-in-class immunotherapeutics into the clinic. Please share this with your network.

BREAKING NEWS! Amolyt Pharma, a CTI Life Sciences Fund portfolio company, enters into a definitive agreement to be acquired by AstraZeneca for $1.05B. The deal includes a $800M upfront payment and a near-term $250M milestone. Congratulations to Thierry Abribat and the whole team on this amazing achievement! Amolyt Pharma is developing best-in-class therapeutic peptides for the treatment of underserved rare endocrine diseases. Its lead asset, Eneboparatide (AZP-3601), is an investigational daily subcutaneous injectable parathyroid hormone receptor 1 (PTHR1) agonist for the treatment of hypoparathyroidism, currently in Phase 3. We are excited about AstraZeneca taking this best-in-class asset forward to help patients with hypoparathyroidism. CTI Life Sciences Fund participated in Amolyt Pharma's Series C last year. A special shout out to Laurence Rulleau,PhD for her leadership on this deal. https://lnkd.in/ejXx6KWk

CTI Life Sciences Fund wants to recognize Youssef Bennani, Managing Partner, for exemplifying the meaning of "paying it forward." Youssef made a sizable donation to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Université de Montréal to create scholarships for future students. We are proud of his accomplishments as a drug developer and ecosystem builder. Thank you for your willingness to support the next generation of innovators. https://lnkd.in/gJXc7cCZ

Exciting News from CTI Life Sciences Fund!   We are thrilled to announce our latest announcement in Ability Pharmaceuticals, SA, a clinical-stage company advancing a novel approach to treating solid tumors through Autophagy. Ability Pharmaceuticals, SA’s lead asset, ABTL0812, demonstrated potential best-in-class efficacy in first-line Pancreatic Cancer when combined with FOLFIRINOX. Preliminary data from ABTL0812’s Ph2b study suggests that the combination has the potential to double the median progression-free survival (PFS) of the current standard of care. A near-term clinical catalyst is expected, so stay tuned for more exciting news from Ability Pharmaceuticals, SA.   Shermaine Tilley, Managing Partner at CTI Life Sciences Fund, identified this hidden opportunity. For her leadership in structuring and closing this complex deal, we will assume both a Director and Observer position on the board. CTI Life Sciences Fund is excited to work with Carles Domenech, CEO of Ability Pharmaceuticals, SA, and his whole team to advance this game-changing therapy. ABTL0812 could become the first treatment in decades to make a significant stride forward for patients with Pancreatic Cancer.   To our network, please reach out to us to learn about Ability Pharma and its exciting lead asset and pipeline. https://lnkd.in/dakBSNpS