Amprion Gains $6 Million in Series B Funding

Amprion has closed $6 million of a $15 million total Series B financing round led by Formation Venture Engineering (FVE) with participation by Eli Lilly and Company and the company’s Series A investors.

The money will help expand Amprion’s commercial reach and enable increased R&D investment. Amprion has evolved seed amplification testing, which can detect small amounts of misfolded proteins in biological samples, such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Amprion’s SAAmplify-ɑSYN biomarker test (formerly SYNTap) is reportedly the only validated seed amplification assay available to help with diagnosing synucleinopathies associated with Parkinson’s disease, Lewy body dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease with neocortical Lewy body co-pathology.

Additionally, Amprion has partnered with numerous pharmaceutical companies to develop therapies for Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Letter of Support (LoS) recommending the use of the alpha-synuclein (α-syn) seed amplification assay (synSAA) for research and clinical trials.

“We are proud to support Amprion and its mission to truly revolutionize brain disease diagnosis and accelerate precision medicine for neurodegenerative disorders,” FVE Managing Partner Rahul Bhansali said. “We believe the shift to diagnosis based on biology, rather than symptomology, will be transformative for patients and clinicians. We are excited to support Amprion as they continue to advance their novel technology.”

Recently published studies in The Lancet Neurology, Alzheimer’s and Dementia, and other leading journals continue to validate the technology, demonstrating the high sensitivity and specificity of Amprion’s SAA for detecting ɑ-synuclein aggregates in CSF—all of which is also confirmed by autopsy.

“We are honored to have FVE and Lilly support our team as we work to advance precision medicine for neurodegenerative disorders,” Amprion Co-Founder/CEO Russell Lebovitz, M.D., Ph.D., stated. “In addition, the strong interest by leading neurology centers and pharmaceutical companies in our mission is indicative of the confidence they have in our technology and in our vision to bring needed clarity to patients and their loved ones with our novel biomarker test.”

Amprion recently submitted its application to New York’s Department of Health which will enable the expansion of its clinical footprint in the United States. The firm also is reconfiguring its board to add up to three new members with industry expertise to manage regulatory pathways and better position the company for growth.

Amprion’s SAAmplify-ɑSYN Biomarker Test is a first-in-class-qualitative Laboratory Developed Test (LDT) and the only seed amplification assay available to help diagnose synucleinopathies such as Parkinson’s disease (PD), Lewy body dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease with neocortical Lewy body copathology. The FDA granted Amprion a Breakthrough Device Designation in 2019 for use of the test as an aid in diagnosing PD. SYNTap became commercially available in 2021.

Amprion advances neurodegenerative disorder diagnoses through seed amplification testing. Amprion’s intellectual property surrounding SAA methodology extends to research, drug development, and commercialization.