Aura Completes $30M Series C Financing

Aura Bioscience has closed a $30 million Series C financing. New investors Lundbeckfonden Ventures and Arix Bioscience plc led the round, with all current investors also participating. Existing investors include Advent Life Sciences, Chiesi Ventures, LI-COR Biosciences, and many more.

The company plans to use proceeds from this round of financing to expand infrastructure supporting ongoing clinical development. Aura intends to continue enrolling patients who have early-stage ocular melanoma in its Phase 1b/2 study of AU-011, the first targeted therapy ever to be developed for the primary treatment of  eye cancer. This therapy has the potential to selectively destroy cancer cells in the eye while preserving vision. Aura is also expanding in 2018 its footprint in Cambridge, Mass., with the addition of new employees, space and equipment.

“This year has been one of incredible momentum for Aura, with interim positive data reported from our Phase 1b/2 study of AU-011 and enthusiasm from key opinion leaders in ocular oncology across the country,” said Elisabet de los Pinos, Ph.D., founder and chief executive officer of Aura. “We are pleased to enter 2018 with the renewed support of existing investors and to welcome Lundbeckfonden Ventures and Arix Bioscience to our Series C syndicate. We look forward this year to laying the groundwork for Phase 3 clinical development, furthering our commitment to enabling earlier treatment intervention for patients with ocular melanoma.”