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Aerpio Therapeutics raises $9M to progress DME trial of a tyrosine kinase receptor 2 activator

Aerpio Therapeutics, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, a company focused on the development of small molecules and monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of vascular disease, has announced the close of a $9 million funding round, representing an extension of a previous series A round of $27 million in August 2012. The funding was led by Satter Investment Management with Novartis Venture Funds and Kearney Venture Partners and followed successful completion of its phase 1b/2a study of AKB9778 for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME). The company stated that proceeds of the funding will be used to support development costs of AKB9778, including a phase 2 trial to confirm monotherapy efficacy and explore adjunctive efficacy with a VEGF inhibitor in DME patients.