SAN DIEGO, Oct. 13, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Seraphina Therapeutics, a health and wellness company dedicated to advancing global health through the discovery of essential fatty acids and micronutrient therapeutics, today announced an additional $5 million dollar Series A round, bringing total capital raised to $11.2 million.
The new capital is being led by Domain Associates, Benvolio Group with prior Coach CEO, Lew Frankfort and prior Vitamin Shoppe CFO, Larry Segall, and Cue Ball Capital. The round also included industry leaders BioBrit with Dan Bradbury, prior CEO of Amylin Pharmaceuticals, and Shazi Visram, founder and prior CEO of Happy Family. The new funding raised will be used to expand the growth of Seraphina’s recurring direct-to-consumer subscription platform as well as developing ingredient opportunities for C15:0 to become an integrated food and beverage fortifier.
The company’s hero offering is the world’s first C15:0 (pentadecanoic acid) essential fatty acid supplement, better known as fatty15. Using FA15TM, Seraphina’s proprietary pure powder and vegan friendly C15:0 ingredient, the Seraphina team aims to positively affect physiological changes relevant for optimal cardiometabolic, immune, and liver health. The breakthrough discovery and advancement of C15:0 as a rare, essential fatty acid was made by Seraphina’s co-founders, a husband-wife and physician-veterinarian military family, while working to improve the health of aging Navy dolphins.
This funding announcement comes on the heels of the company’s recent announcements of acquiring Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status for FA15TM, as well as an ongoing 12-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to explore the ability of FA15TM to positively affect physiological changes relevant for optimal cardiometabolic, immune, and liver health.
“After discovering the first essential fatty acid in over 90 years, the excitement of the monumental discovery quickly changed from a once-in-a-life-time, science moment to a purpose-driven obligation to advance global health -- specifically, to promote preventative health and stem the rise of metabolic, heart and liver diseases,” said Stephanie Venn-Watson, CEO and co-founder of Seraphina Therapeutics. “As we continue to see greater demand for FA15TM, we are thrilled to see a growing body of independent studies from around the world supporting the critical role of C15:0 in maintaining our long-term health.”
Recently, two key prospective cohort studies have been published that continue to support the essential role of C15:0. In the first study, teams from Australia, Sweden, Harvard University and Johns Hopkins followed over 4,000 people for 16 years and found that those with higher blood concentrations of C15:0 had a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease, with lower overall mortality rates. In another prospective cohort study, teams from Harvard University and four other prestigious universities followed over 2,000 older adults for approximately 10 years and showed that people with higher C15:0 blood concentrations were less likely to develop heart failure.
“We are excited to be backing two passionate founders who have dedicated their lives to public service and now to creating a purposeful entrepreneurial platform that can eventually help improve the lives of millions,” said Mats Lederhausen, founding operating partner of Cue Ball and founder of Be-Cause. “By helping people to better understand the differences between good fats and bad fats and then offering a super ‘good fat’ supplement is beyond exciting.”
Throughout 2021, Fatty15 has experienced a surge in early consumer adoption, selling out of its initial offering within six weeks of launch. To date, more than 85% of fatty15 customers renew their subscriptions for this essential fatty acid. Benchmarked against other DTC subscription products in the health and wellness industry, fatty15 remains in the top 9th percentile, with an average monthly retention rate above 90%. Seraphina Therapeutics holds exclusive licensing rights to more than 30 U.S. and international patents to commercialize C15:0 for human use, including a key patent recently issued by the USPTO on September 14, 2021 (U.S. Patent 11,116,740) that covers general use of C15:0 as a supplement, food or beverage fortifier, and pharmaceutical.
“Seraphina Therapeutics has raised the bar of science-backed supplements,” said Larry Segall, Operating Partner at Benvolio and former CFO of The Vitamin Shoppe. “A mounting body of scientific evidence and measured results are demonstrating that fatty15 is delivering tangible and clinically-relevant health benefits that consumers can experience within weeks to months.”
About Seraphina
Seraphina Therapeutics, Inc. is a health and wellness company dedicated to advancing global health through the discovery of essential fatty acids and micronutrient therapeutics. Through rigorous breakthrough science, the company develops fatty acid supplements, food fortifiers and nutritional interventions to strengthen cells, keep mitochondria working and advance cellular homeostasis to counter age-related breakdown. With its team of industry-leading scientists, Seraphina Therapeutics challenges long held approaches to nutrition, enabling the creation of novel health products designed to support quality of life. The company is a spinout of Epitracker, Inc. and headquartered in San Diego. For more information, please visit www.seraphinatherapeutics.com and www.fatty15.com.
Contact
For press inquiries: fatty15@launchsquad.com
