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Drug, Diagnostic Developer HMNC Brain Health Raises €14.3M

NEW YORK — HMNC Brain Health, a German developer of psychiatric biopharmaceuticals and companion diagnostics, said on Thursday that it has raised €14.3 million ($14.0 million).

The financing included existing investors Carsten Maschmeyer, the Jahr Group, and Guntard Gutmann, as well as new investors Josef Ackermann, Real Madrid star footballer Toni Kroos, Wilhelm Beier, and Hans Kompernaß. HMNC said it has raised €42.3 million to date.

HMNC said the money will be used to continue development of therapeutic programs, which include the drug candidate nelivaptan and a companion molecular diagnostic. Nelivaptan, which targets the vasopressin V1b receptor, is scheduled to enter a Phase II study in the first half of 2023, according to HMNC. The artificial intelligence-based companion diagnostic, meanwhile, aims to identify patients with underlying dysfunction of the HPA-axis.

"With this funding, we will advance the development of our personalized therapies to combat severe, unmet mental health challenges around the world," HMNC Chief Business Officer Maximilian Doebler said in a statement.

The firm noted that it expects a second closing of the current financing round by the end of March 2023.

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