Akebia Therapeutics is a venture-backed start-up pharmaceutical company with a focus on treatments for ischemia and improvement of vascular disease.  Akebia has in-licensed high-quality drug development programs and treatment assets from Procter & Gamble.  The drug development programs were initiated by P&G and developed with significant investment and internal support from P&G scientists.  Two preclinical programs are in late phase discovery with all drug candidates targeted to enter the clinic within one to three years.  Akebia’s focus is on clinical development of these novel compounds for anemia and ischemia-related disorders. One of the primary ischemia-related product indications Akebia will pursue is peripheral artery disease (PAD).