CoLucid ready on migraine drug

Company has funds for final trials

CoLucid Pharmaceuticals, a drug development company founded by Pappas Ventures of Durham, has raised $25 million in financing to launch the final phase of testing of its experimental migraine treatment.

CEO James White said CoLucid is developing a first-of-its-type migraine drug that, based on tests conducted so far, avoids the common side effect of existing treatments: vasoconstriction, or a narrowing of the blood vessels.

CoLucid is a "virtual company" that outsources the bulk of its work.

Technically its headquarters is in Indianapolis, but it has no full-time employees there, said White, who is based in Boston. Three of the company's four full-time employees are in Durham.

The company could hire a few new employees over the next year, but it plans to continue in the virtual mold, White said.

The company's experimental migraine treatment, COL-144, should be ready to begin Phase III clinical trials by the end of next year, White said. If all goes well -- a big if in the drug development field -- that would position the company to seek regulatory approval in late 2011 or early 2012.

Art Pappas, managing partner of Pappas Ventures and CoLucid's chairman, said the progress CoLucid has made to date made it an attractive candidate for new financing. CoLucid raised $16.5 million in financing in December 2005.

Pappas Ventures participated in the latest round of funding, which was led by Care Capital of Princeton, N.J.

Pappas Ventures formed CoLucid in 2005 after licensing an experimental migraine drug from pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co. and acquiring other technology elsewhere. Lilly was developing the drug as an intravenous treatment, but CoLucid has reformulated it so that it can be taken orally, Pappas said.

White was director of neuroscience at Lilly when it was developing what is now COL-144.

CoLucid also is developing a drug that people who work long shifts -- such as truck drivers and firefighters -- could use instead of amphetamines to stay awake and alert. That drug is expected to enter clinical trials -- safety tests involving people -- early next year.