Azura Ophthalmic Raises $20 million

Azura Ophthalmics Ltd., a dry eye treatment development in Israel, has announced that they have successfully raised a whopping $20 million in a funding round that was led by a group of existing investors. These names included Ganot Capital, Brandon Capital’s Medical Research Commercialization Fund (MRCF), TPG Biotech, and OrbiMed. Azura has operations in the United States and Australia, but its headquarters are located in Tel Aviv.

This is a clinical-stage development firm that develops innovative therapies for dealing with Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) and other related eye diseases. After the Phase II data turned out to be quite promising, Azura will now use the new funds for advancing its lead product candidate known as AZR-MD-001. They intend to perform a registration study for treating MGD, which is referred to as an eye condition where the Meibomian glands are dysfunctional and this causes the tear film to evaporate rapidly. 

Dry Eye Disease is a condition that affects more than 30 million people in the United States alone and its leading cause is none other than Meibomian gland dysfunction. Hence, there is a huge need that’s globally unmet. AZR-MD-001 is Azura’s lead compound, which is essentially a topical ointment that’s applied to the lower lid. A number of studies in MGD indicate that this ointment has a positive efficacy and safety profile. Keeping this data in mind and contact with the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in the United States, the company is planning to undertake some registration studies in 2021.

Marc Gleeson, the CEO for Azura, said that they were looking forward to starting 2021 with some new funding because it will enable them to conduct new studies that are needed for building a strong body of clinical evidence for their approach. This would allow them to seek approval from the FDA for the first ophthalmic keratolytics that can help treat the Meibomian gland dysfunction. He added that they were grateful to their investors for offering support and sharing their conviction about the company’s medicines in development. This medicine could have the potential to transform treatment and give hope to millions of people who are dealing with unresolved eye conditions.