One-on-One with Dan Adelman, chief medical officer of celiac disease drug developer Alvine Pharmaceuticals

A gluten-free diet is great for celiac disease patients, but even the strictest adherents to dietary restrictions can experience flare ups or chronic symptoms.
That’s where Alvine Pharmaceuticals Inc. comes in with a drug that could make a huge impact. The San Carlos company earlier this month reported results of a Phase IIa trial that showed that its drug, ALV-003, could make a difference in helping patients with gluten-limiting celiac disease. It is the first mid-stage study to get positive results in modulating the immune system’s response to the storage protein.
The 15-employee company is backed by Sofinnova Ventures, InterWest Partners, Prospect Venture Partners, Flagship Ventures, Black River Asset Management and Panorama Capital.

Sofinnova raises $440M life sciences-only fund

Amid the doom and gloom of venture investing in biotech, Sofinnova Ventures said Monday that it has raised a $440 million life sciences-focused fund.
Sofinnova's eighth fund is aimed at late-stage companies — including those spun out of drug-development programs acquired by Menlo Park-based Sofinnova — so it won’t necessarily help cash-hungry startups or other young companies. Yet Sofinnova general partner Mike Powell said the cash is earmarked for life sciences companies only.
“It’s clinically later-stage assets, but we’re the Series A investor in 80 percent of companies,” Powell said.