Singapore: Auspherix, an early stage anti-infectives company developing novel antibiotics to treat resistant bacterial disease, has raised $1 million in a series A financing from Australia's Medical Research Commercialisation Fund (MRCF), to progress its antibacterial compounds through development studies.

Established in 2013, Auspherix has identified a number of antibacterial compounds with broad spectrum activity against a panel of clinical isolates of antibiotic resistant Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The new investment will be used to refine the lead compound series, and to screen in in vivo models in collaboration with Evotec (previously Euprotec).

Auspherix has adopted a virtual business model with research being directed by Professor Ian Charles, CSO and founder of Auspherix, who is Director of the ithree institute at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). The founding intellectual property behind Auspherix was in-licensed from the ithree institute based on research led by Professor Charles, together with Dr Dagmar Alber, ithree Senior Research Fellow. Professor Charles and Dr Alber previously worked together successfully at Arrow Therapeutics as CSO and head of virology respectively.

The scientific team has been further strengthened by the appointment of Dr Ian Holmes as head of chemistry alongside Dr Alber as head of biology. Dr Holmes is an experienced medicinal chemist and pre-clinical project leader with a proven track record of program milestone delivery in large pharma and biotech environments. Past positions include Director of Medicinal Chemistry at Cancer Therapeutics CRC, Melbourne, Australia and prior to that at GSK.