The 2011 start-up Arteaus Therapeutics LLC, funded by Atlas Venture and OrbiMed, has generated a return more than 16 times the original $18m the venture capital firms invested in the company now that royalties from the Eli Lilly & Co. migraine therapy Emgality (galcanezumab) have been sold to Royalty Pharma for $260m.
Arteaus was established with a $18m Series A funding round to develop the Lilly-discovered calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) inhibitor galcanezumab through Phase II proof of concept for the prophylactic treatment of migraine headaches. The new outsourcing model allowed for faster early clinical development, while the big pharma and Arteaus' VC backers shared the financial risk – and reward – of the de-risking process for the monoclonal antibody