NEW YORK , Dec. 13, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mid-Atlantic Bio Angels (MABA) announces today that NangioTx, Inc.(http://www.nangiotx.com) was voted as “Best of the Best” among past winners of MABA's 1st Pitch Life Science events for 2016. The competition took place on December 6, 2016, at Medidata Solutions at 350 Hudson Street in New York City. NangioTx is a Houston-based drug development company developing a novel drug that promotes the growth of new blood vessels in the muscles of patients with peripheral artery disease, which causes muscle atrophy and cell death.
"Nine companies that have previously won ‘Best in Show’ titles in 2016 1st Pitch competitions competed for the coveted ‘Best of the Best’ title at MABA's end of year competition. All the previous winners had significantly improved their pitches, and the competition was fierce,” said Yaniv Sneor, MABA co-founder and president of Blue Cactus Consulting. “Vivek Kumar, NangioTx's CEO, delivered a compelling and engaging pitch that won the majority of audience votes, and the well-earned title of 2016 ‘Best of the Best.’ I see a bright future for him and his company.”
“We left the 1st Pitch competition in February with a number of ideas of how to improve the approach to our business plan, while continuing to pursue our science. We are grateful to have been able to apply that knowledge in order to be chosen as ‘Best of the Best,’ said Vivek Kumar, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of NangioTx. “Peripheral artery disease sufferers remain an extremely underserved population – more than 8 million Americans – and we are dedicated to developing a potential treatment to preserve their muscle tissue for as long as possible.”
NangioTx’s flagship product, V-10,is a thixotropic self-assembling peptide drug that promotes angiogenesis for muscle preservation. V-10 presents a mimic of VEGF in much higher epitope density stimulating localized blood vessel growth in an injectable hydrogel. V-10 has shown therapeutic benefit in the preclinical efficacy model of peripheral artery disease (PAD). Studies of the drug demonstrate that it improves perfusion and gait in the mice with hind limb ischemia. The company is currently developing it for evaluation in a Phase I clinical trial for intermittent claudication in PAD.
“After more than two hours of pitches and despite being second to the last of the nine presenters, the audience of nearly 150 who remained through the evening expressed great enthusiasm for NangioTx’s pitch and its revascularization technology,” added Stephen M. Goodman, co-founder of MABA and a partner at New York law firm Pryor Cashman, LP. “1st Pitch advertises that its presenting companies are not quite ready for investment. NangioTx’s pitch, like the other pitches at this event, showed that Vivek Kumar took the assessments offered at the company’s earlier presentation this year and used them to advance the case that his company may, in fact, be ready.”
As winner of “Best of the Best,” NangioTx will receive select services free of charge from sponsors of the event, including, intellectual property counsel from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; FDA counsel from BakerHostetler; general corporate, corporate governance and finance counsel from McCarter & English, LLP; technology transfer and licensing counsel from Pryor Cashman, LP; business commercialization strategy and execution from Blue Cactus Consulting; a free press release developed by JQA Partners, Inc.; and advisory on becoming desirable to investors from Capgenic Advisors.
About NangioTx
NangioTx is a Houston-based company developing a platform regenerative technology to engineer tissue by returning blood flow to dying organs. Reduced blood flow (ischemia) to the legs in peripheral artery disease results in tissue damage and ultimately limb amputation or death. NangioTx’s flagship technology, V-10, is an injectable material that helps create new blood vessels. V-10 promotes growth and maturity of new vessels through proprietary, patent pending technology.
About Mid Atlantic Bio Angels
Mid Atlantic Bio Angels (http://bioangels.net) is a group of active angel investors, which meets in New York City monthly (except July and August) solely to hear from pre-screened early-stage life science companies. MABA members consist of individuals from Delaware to Massachusetts with significant expertise and experience in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, including former and current corporate executives, doctors and Ph.D. scientists with product development backgrounds, successful medical entrepreneurs and analyst/investors focused on life sciences. MABA's goal is to create an environment where the depth of investors' knowledge coupled with the pre-screening of presenting companies enhances the potential for meaningful investment.