RiverVest Venture Partners

Please join us in welcoming Nafise Masoumi to the RiverVest team. As a senior associate based in our San Diego office, Nafise will focus on deal sourcing, due diligence, and analysis of prospective investments and provide operational support for RiverVest’s portfolio companies. We look forward to her contributions as RiverVest continues to grow and advance promising technologies in the #biopharmaceutical and medical #device sectors. 👉 About Nafise:   Nafise brings extensive #MedTech and biopharmaceutical experience both in academia and the investment industry, most recently at Novo Holdings Venture Investments, where she engaged in discovery and due diligence for early- and late-stage biotech companies. Prior to Novo, Nafise worked at Takeda and Boston Consulting Group. Earlier in her career, Nafise completed fellowships at Flagship Pioneering and the Wyss Institute at Harvard.   Nafise earned a Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering at Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology (HST) and Penn State. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship in Robert Langer’s Lab at MIT and at the Department of Cardiac Surgery at Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School. Nafise holds MSc and BSc degrees in Chemical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology in Iran and was a visiting scholar at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Oxford, where she analyzed energy metabolism in the brain. Nafise has co-authored 21 peer-reviewed journal publications. Read the press release here: https://lnkd.in/g8tbdBK5

With the dramatic growth of venous interventions in recent years, #vascular specialists are gaining new insights into the lifelong impacts of deep venous obstruction and occlusion, especially in post-thrombotic (#blodclot) patients, as well as the challenging problem of in-stent restenosis (blockage in the stented vein). Chronic occlusions and obstructions reduce venous blood flow (drainage) from the legs, which can result in swelling, significant pain, immobility, and, as it progresses, skin changes and ulceration if not treated. These signs and symptoms are known as postthrombotic syndrome (#PTS).   RiverVest is enthusiastic about a promising new technology that would allow vascular specialists to recanalize and restore #patency in chronically obstructed deep veins and venous stents, particularly when #recanalization capabilities are limited or when long-term chronic stent maintenance is necessary.    On World Thrombosis Day, we invite you to learn more about InterVene, Inc. and its Recana™ catheter system, which we believe has great potential for addressing significant unmet needs for patients with chronic venous insufficiency (#CVI) and post-thrombotic disease.    Jeff Elkins Jay Schmelter Andrew Kleiboeker Catherine Matthes Abha Chinubhai Stephen Black #WorldThrombosisDay #deepveinthrombosis #DVT #thrombosis #venousstents #instentrestenosis    https://lnkd.in/gRpRPN38  

On World Mental Health Day, RiverVest salutes the scientists and health professionals around the world who have dedicated their careers to developing safer, more effective therapeutics for people struggling with mental health disorders. We proudly support Engrail Therapeutics in its efforts to deliver transformational therapies to improve the lives of patients with devastating neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. Last month, Engrail initiated its first-in-human Phase 1 clinical study of ENX-104 for the treatment of major depressive disorder (#MDD) characterized by anhedonia. Recruitment is ongoing for Engrail's Phase 2 clinical study of ENX-102 as a monotherapy treatment in patients with generalized anxiety disorder (#GAD). To learn more about Engrail and its innovative, precision-targeted therapeutics, we invite you to read our recent profile of Vikram Sudarsan, CEO of Engrail, here: https://lnkd.in/grw49GWw #WorldMentalHealthDay #anxiety #depression #anhedonia

RiverVest is proud to co-lead InterVene, Inc.'s Series A equity round to advance its Recana™ deep vein interventional technology through US market clearance. We are also excited to welcome Brad Vale, PhD, DVM of Treo Ventures, to InterVene's board of directors. RiverVest is a strong supporter of InterVene, and we believe the company is well-positioned to address significant unmet needs for patients with chronic venous insufficiency (#CVI) and post-thrombotic disease. https://lnkd.in/gRpRPN38 #thrombosis #medicaldevice #biotech #venturecapital Andrew Kleiboeker Jay Schmelter Jeff Elkins

RiverVest wishes Vikram Sudarsan and the Engrail Therapeutics team success in this important next step in addressing the significant unmet needs of patients with neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental diseases. #ENX104 #MDD #anhedonia  

In the specialized field of #LifeSciences #VentureCapital, the management team is critical to a company’s success. In the early stages, when the focus is on developing the technology, the #CEO will likely have a scientific or medical background. As the company progresses, the focus shifts toward business and clinical development expertise. RiverVest Venture Partners portfolio company Avalyn Pharma reached such a #leadership inflection point following the successful completion of a Phase 1b clinical study for its lead product, an inhaled therapy for pulmonary fibrosis. It was time to bring in an experienced leader to drive the portfolio forward. Avalyn Pharma CEO Lyn Baranowski was recruited not only for her experience across #biotech, big #pharma, and venture capital, especially in the respiratory therapeutics space, but also for her intellectual curiosity, genuine enthusiasm, and collaborative leadership style. For this Expert Insight, RiverVest spoke with Lyn about who she is, what brought her to Avalyn, and what fuels her passion for building great companies. 👉 Be sure to watch 👀 the short video clips 🎥 embedded in the article to hear directly from Lyn! 🔗 Read more at https://lnkd.in/gMF86aMM #ProgressivePulmonaryFibrosis #PPF #IdiopathicPulmonaryFibrosis #IPF #PulmonaryFibrosis #PF #InterstitialLungDisease #ILD #MISTPPFClinicalStudy #clinicaltrial #AP01 #AP02 #Pirfenidone #Nintedanib #RareDisease #Leadership  #TeamBuilding #ManagementTeam Howard M. Lazarus, MD, Melissa Rhodes Craig Conoscenti,MD,FCCP,ATSF Douglas Carlson Mai Tanaka-Wakefield Niall O'Donnell Pascal Krotee, Ph.D. Isaac Zike Ph.D. Derek Rapp

Congratulations to former RiverVest portfolio company, Neuros Medical, Inc. on the FDA approval of its nerve stimulation system for people suffering from phantom and residual pain following lower limb amputation. This system can offer significant relief without fear of chemical addiction.

Exciting news from RiverVest portfolio company Avalyn Pharma. With the initiation of its Phase 2b MIST Study of AP01 inhaled pirfenidone for progressive pulmonary fibrosis (#PPF), Avalyn is one step closer to providing an effective and tolerable treatment for this fatal disease. There is no cure for PPF. Current treatments in pill form can slow the disease in some people. However, high doses are needed for the swallowed medicine to reach the lungs, which may cause side effects. #MIST is a 52-week study to evaluate if an inhaled form of pirfenidone (#AP01) can improve lung function and have fewer side effects. Learn more in Avalyn's press release below. 👇 Niall O'Donnell Lyn Baranowski

Another milestone for RiverVest portfolio company Avalyn Pharma! There is a dire need for effective therapies that patients with pulmonary fibrosis can tolerate for long-term management of their disease. This Phase 1b clinical study, evaluating the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of AP02 (inhaled nintedanib) in healthy adult volunteers, is an important next step in bringing potentially transformational clinical benefit to patients.

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