InteKrin Therapeutics Secures $23 M Venture Financing

Company Will Focus on the Areas of Diabetes, Metabolism and Obesity

PALO ALTO, Calif. – January 11, 2007 – InteKrin Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of products for diabetes, metabolism and obesity today announced it had secured $23 million in venture financing. The financing was led by Sofinnova Ventures and included Orbimed Advisors and Vivo Ventures, as well as earlier investors Asset Management and Sears Capital Management. The round will fund the clinical development of InteKrin's lead drug candidate, INT131, targeting type II diabetes.

"InteKrin is very pleased to have the financial support and confidence of these excellent health care investors," remarked InteKrin's President and CEO Denny Lanfear. "This investment by Sofinnova and OrbiMed will allow InteKrin to pursue the development of INT131 through Phase IIb clinical trials while building the company's portfolio of important diabetes and metabolism therapeutics." "InteKrin has a proven business strategy to in-license high potential clinical stage products from large biotech and pharmaceutical, then carry them through to critical clinical stages," commented Sofinnova General Partner Jim Healy, M.D., Ph.D. "The investors have confidence in the company's product development team and scientific advisory board, which are world class. They're a formidable group who can carry INT131 through the phases of development necessary for this therapeutic to reach needy patients."

Taking seats on InteKrin's board of directors are investors Healy, Sam Wertheimer, Ph.D. of Orbimed, and Barry Selick, Ph.D., CEO of Threshold Pharmaceuticals. They join InteKrin's Chairman Lowell Sears and Paul Truex, CEO of Anthera Pharmaceuticals, on InteKrin's Board.

About InteKrin. 
InteKrin Therapeutics, Inc. is a privately-held clinical stage biopharmaceutical company based in Palo Alto, California developing therapeutics for diabetes, obesity and metabolic disorders. The company was founded in 2005 by Denny Lanfear, a former Vice President and Officer of Amgen, and Christos Mantzoros, M.D., DSc, renowned clinical endocrinologist and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. InteKrin's Scientific Advisory Board includes veterans from several successful biopharma organizations, internationally recognized experts in nuclear receptors and metabolism as well as top scientists formerly with the Food and Drug Administration. The company focuses on high value therapeutics in addressing unmet medical needs. To learn more about InteKrin, visit www.intekrin.com.

At Vivo Ventures, we leverage our internal expertise in evaluating data to generate outsized returns for company founders and employees as well as for our investors. Vivo prides itself on its working relationships with its founders who have often continued to work with the firm in other startup ventures. The majority of Vivo's investments are in U.S. based companies with therapeutic products in clinical development. MORE