Tau Therapeutics and Xdynia merge

Two Charlottesville-based companies, Tau Therapeutics LLC and Xdynia LLC have merged, and the combined company is now known as Cavion LLC.

Cavion is a privately held, clinical-stage platform pharmaceutical company creating therapies engaging the T-type calcium channel (Cav3) for the treatment of cancer and neurologic diseases.

“The oncology and neurology fields predominate in diseases of high unmet medical need,” Andrew Krouse,  Cavion’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “The combination of Tau Therapeutics and Xdynia into one platform company will increase our ability to create innovative therapies for patients suffering with life-altering illnesses. We also believe that the merger adds tremendous value and even greater up-side potential than if either company moved forward alone.”

The T-type calcium channel is an emerging molecular target for cancer and pain.

The name “Cavion” reflects the combined company’s therapeutic approach of selectively inhibiting the Cav3 ion channel (T-type calcium channel).

The goal of the merger is to create a company with a portfolio of valuable oncology and neurology preclinical and clinical stage assets, increasing the probability of developing many successful drugs.