About Us
Akebia Therapeutics is a venture-backed start-up pharmaceutical company with a focus on treatments for ischemia and improvement of vascular disease. In early 2006, P&G announced a strategic decision to stop all internal drug discovery efforts. Following that decision, Akebia in-licensed select, high-quality drug development programs and assets from P&G. The two preclinical programs are in late phase discovery or early preclinical development, with all drug candidates targeted to enter the clinic within one to three years. Both programs have multiple drug candidates identified, with animal proof-of-concept data available. The company’s focus is on clinical development of these novel compounds targeted for treatment of anemia and ischemia-related disorders. One of the primary ischemia-related products will be for treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD).
Projects licensed from mature pharmaceutical companies have proven to be highly successful owing to both the scientific rigor surrounding the drug candidates and the experienced pharmaceutical executives that can accompany the assets. Akebia aims to follow that start-up model, by coupling the deep program and drug development knowledge of a key P&G executive with individuals having operational expertise in biotech start-ups. The management team leading Akebia has extensive experience in drug discovery and drug development including Omacor® (omega-3-acid ethyl esters) for hypertriglyceridemia and other conditions, and Actonel® (risedronate) for osteoporosis.
