Aspen Neuroscience Secures $115 Million to Advance Parkinson's Disease Therapy

Aspen Neuroscience, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company at the forefront of autologous regenerative therapies, has successfully closed a $115 million Series C financing round. This significant investment will propel the clinical development of Aspen's flagship program, ANPD001, aimed at treating moderate to advanced Parkinson's disease.

The Series C round was co-led by notable firms including OrbiMed, ARCH Venture Partners, Frazier Life Sciences, and Revelation Partners, with existing investors such as Medical Excellence Capital, S32, Axon Ventures, LYFE Capital, and LifeForce Capital also participating. New investors in this round include Kite, a Gilead Company (Nasdaq: GILD), Balyasny Asset Management, Cormorant Asset Management, Prebys Ventures, among others. With this funding, Aspen’s total capital raised now exceeds $340 million, which includes an $8 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). Additionally, Cindy Perettie, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Kite, will join Aspen's board of directors as part of this financing.

"This financing marks a pivotal moment for Aspen as we accelerate our mission to deliver personalized regenerative therapies for people with Parkinson's disease and beyond," said Damien McDevitt, Ph.D, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aspen Neuroscience. "We are grateful for the confidence our investors have shown in our science, team, vision, and market opportunity. The significant experience and deep capital resources our investor syndicate brings will be instrumental in advancing Aspen's next phases of clinical development and commercial readiness. Their strategic guidance and financial support empower us to scale our operations, expand our pipeline, and bring transformative therapies closer to those in need." The Series C financing will facilitate the advancement of Aspen's proprietary manufacturing platform, which utilizes machine learning and advanced genomics to produce the highest quality personalized cells for each patient, establishing a new standard for consistency and scalability in cell therapy. This funding arrives on the heels of the initiation of dosing for the Phase 1/2a Cohort 3 commercial formulation and the presentation of encouraging safety and efficacy data at six months post-procedure for Cohort 1.

"It is significant to see a private financing of this quality. Securing this round is a testament to how this team is rising above with innovation in product characterization, manufacturing automation, and positive clinical results," stated Faheem Hasnain, Board Chairman of Aspen Neuroscience. "Aspen is poised to deliver the first potentially disease-modifying therapy for the millions of patients waiting for these advancements." ANPD001 is recognized as the most advanced autologous investigational cell therapy in the United States for treating Parkinson's disease.

Additional details about the Phase 1/2a trial can be found at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT06344026). Aspen's personalized approach ensures that patients do not need to take immunosuppressive (IS) drugs to mitigate the body's immune response against foreign cells. This strategy aims to prevent IS‑related adverse events, eliminate the need for IS drug monitoring, and allow dosing for patients with contraindications to IS therapies. ANPD001 has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Recent progress on Cohort 3 indicates that Aspen has begun administering the commercial formulation of ANPD001, which was found to be preclinically comparable to the formulations used in earlier cohorts. Data from earlier cohorts reported at IAPRD highlighted strong safety and tolerability alongside clinician- and patient-reported improvements, achieved without immunosuppression. The cryopreserved, ready-to-dose formulation is designed to improve surgical workflows and lessen the burden on hospital cell processing labs.