Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Vital
Therapies Completes First Closing of $8 Million Private
Equity Financing
Financing
will fund pivotal clinical trials
San
Diego, November 1, 2005 - Vital Therapies, Inc.
(VTI)
announced today that it has completed the first close of
the Company's Series B private equity financing, raising $8
million. MedVenture Associates led the investment, with
participation from Valley Ventures, Paragon Venture
Partners and Toucan Capital, plus other individual
investors.
The proceeds of the financing will enable the Company to
initiate further clinical studies of the Extracorporeal
Liver Assist Device (ELAD ®) system, the first human liver
cell- based therapy that provides important metabolic
support for patients with severe liver failure by
eliminating toxins and synthesizing many of the proteins
that are key products of normal human liver function. This
support extends the time available to provide patients with
a bridge to recovery or a liver transplant, based on the
type and severity of liver failure.
VTI has already completed Phase I and 2 clinical trials
with ELAD in the United States and the United Kingdom. In
2006, VTI plans to confirm ELAD's safety and efficacy in
pivotal clinical trials in China, which will serve as the
basis for China approval and launch. Liver disease is a
major medical problem in China, where it results in more
than 400,000 deaths per year. VTI expects to begin pivotal
Phase 3 clinical trials in the United States in 2007.
In connection with the financing, Jan Barker of MedVenture
Associates has joined the VTI Board of Directors. Also on
the Board are Randolph C. Steer M.D., Ph. D., an
independent pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical
devices consultant, and Terry E. Winters, Ph.D., VTI
chairman and CEO. Linda Powers of Toucan Capital has joined
as an observer to the Board.
"At MedVenture Associates we know that successful
investments require an innovative idea, a large unmet
market need and a capable management team. Vital Therapies
has all of these components," said Jan Barker. "The ELAD
system offers the potential to significantly impact a
large, underserved market by reducing morbidity and
mortality for patients with liver disease."
"We have put together a great team at Vital Therapies and a
wonderful group of investors with in-depth experience and
understanding of both the medical device industry and liver
disease," said Dr. Winters. "We selected China for our
initial market launch due to the tremendous human need
there, the size of the market and the country's receptivity
to new approaches for liver disease. However, we will
quickly follow with the implementation of our plans in the
United States and Europe."
Further information on MedVenture Associates can be found
at www.medvcn.com., Toucan Capital at www.toucancapital.com
and at Valley Ventures www.valleyventure.com.
About Liver Disease
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines the worldwide
market for acute-on- chronic liver failure as approximately
12 million patients. Currently, the only widely accepted
therapy for liver failure is transplantation. In the United
States, liver disease is the 12th overall cause of death
and the 7th leading cause in the 25-44 and 45-64 year-old
groups. According to data from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC), liver disease or cirrhosis
are the primary diagnoses for 100,000 hospitalized patients
in the United States each year, causing more than 25,000
deaths annually. Approximately 17,500 patients in the
United States are on the liver transplant waiting list;
less than one- third of these patients will receive a
transplant.
In China, liver disease is endemic, causing more than
400,000 deaths annually. Hepatitis is the third most
prevalent disease in China, and 20 million people have
active viral liver disease. Official estimates suggest that
China's yearly medical expenses for liver disease
infections are more than $12 billion.
About Vital Therapies. Inc.
Vital Therapies, Inc. (VTI) is a San Diego-based liver
therapy company. VTI is developing the first human-liver
cell-based system, ELAD® (Extracorporeal Liver Assist
Device), which provides important metabolic support for
patients with severe liver failure.
About ELAD®
Vital Therapies, Inc.'s ELAD® System provides important
metabolic support for patients with severe liver failure,
thereby enabling a bridge to recovery or transplant
depending on the type and severity of liver failure. Unlike
competitive artificial filtration systems, which simply
remove toxins and can only be used for a treatment of
several hours, the ELAD system both metabolizes toxins and
provides synthetic function, producing many of the proteins
that are key products of normal human liver function. The
ELAD system can be used to treat a patient continually for
up to 12 days. The key to the performance of ELAD is its
utilization of a proprietary human hepatocyte cell line,
C3A, an immortalized cell line that can be grown, stored
and shipped worldwide.
CONTACTS:
Investors:
Aron Stem
Vital Therapies, Inc.
858-673-6840
Email:
astern@vitaltherapies.com
MEDIA:
Kelly McKenna
MS&L
415-254-6239
Email:
kelly.mckenna@mslpr.com
