RARE Daily

Vera Therapeutics Raises $75 Million in Upsized Public Offering

February 11, 2022

Vera Therapeutics, a late-stage company focused on developing and commercializing transformative treatments for serious immunological diseases, raised $75 million in an upsized public offering.

The company sold 5 million shares of its Class A common stock at $15.00 per share. In addition, Vera has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 748,959 shares of its Class A common stock at the public offering price, less the underwriting discounts and commissions.

Vera’s lead product candidate is atacicept, a fusion protein self-administered as a subcutaneous injection once weekly that blocks both B lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS) and a proliferation inducing ligand (APRIL), which stimulate B cells and plasma cells to produce autoantibodies contributing to certain autoimmune diseases, including IgA nephropathy (IgAN), also known as Berger’s disease and lupus nephritis.

IgAN, also known as Berger’s disease, is an autoimmune disease driven by the deposition of abnormal immune complexes that accumulate in the kidneys, causing inflammatory tissue damage and kidney failure. Almost half of IgAN patients progress to end-stage renal disease, requiring dialysis or kidney transplant. Current standard of care includes angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs), which provide limited clinical benefits with known safety and toxicity issues.

Lupus nephritis (LN) is a severe renal manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SLE is a chronic and disabling autoimmune disease in which the body’s own immune system attacks itself, significantly increasing mortality risk.

Vera holds an exclusive worldwide license for the development and commercialization of atacicept in all indications from Merck KGaA.

Author: Rare Daily Staff

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