Emergo Therapeutics Raises $12 Million in Venture Funding, Led
by REX Health Ventures
Money will support development and testing of a new treatment for flu-like illness
RALEIGH, N.C. – May 23, 2018 – Emergo Therapeutics, a promising pharmaceutical development company working on a new treatment for flu-like illness, has raised $12 million in a Series A funding from a group of investors led by REX Health Ventures (RHV). Other major investors include Wolfpack Investor Network (WIN), Carolina Angel Network (CAN) and the Venture Capital Multiplier Fund at Hatteras Venture Partners.
Emergo marks the 12th investment by REX Health Ventures, one of the nation’s first venture capital funds run by a community, nonprofit hospital. Physicians and other experts with UNC REX Healthcare in Raleigh, N.C., helped assess Emergo’s technology and potential to help patients.
Durham-based Emergo was founded in September 2016 by Robin and Nancy Hyde-DeRuyscher to study treatments for mast cell disorder, for which there are few treatment options. The company’s leading product is expected to help control the body’s immune response to a virus and alleviate the symptoms of flu-like illness. The venture funding will allow Emergo to move ahead with development and testing of norketotifen, the only active metabolite of ketotifen, a drug with a 40-year record of safety and efficacy in asthma and allergic conditions.
“REX Health Ventures is proud to support Emergo's pioneering development to reduce symptoms associated with flu-like illnesses,” said Steve Burriss, president of UNC REX. “We are confident in Emergo’s leadership and look forward to supporting their research of innovative treatments that could benefit millions of patients.”
Moise Khayrallah joined Emergo in the spring of 2017 as CEO, providing expertise in company operation, funding and drug development. Khayrallah has led a series of successful drug companies in the Research Triangle region, including Addrenex Pharmaceuticals, Neuronex and Aerial BioPharma.
“Startup companies in the Triangle, like Emergo, are increasingly depending not only on institutional investors like RHV, but also on a growing network of angel investors either based within this region’s three major universities or loosely affiliated with them,” Khayrallah said. “RHV’s leadership and due diligence capabilities in the health sciences field are crucial in rounding together sizable funds that could transform the landscape of health sciences companies in our area.”
About REX Health Ventures
Rex Health Ventures (RHV) was established in 2012 by UNC REX Healthcare in Raleigh, N.C., as part of its commitment to innovation. RHV enables groundbreaking work by investing in and fostering companies and technologies that advance the future of health and improves patient care. RHV has partnered with a dozen emerging companies throughout North Carolina and the U.S., and leverages the talent and subject matter experts across the UNC REX and UNC Health Care network. To learn more, click here.
