Argolyn, MUSC drug developer spinoff, files for bankruptcy

An upstart drug developer that spun off from the Medical University of South Carolina before moving to North Carolina last year has failed.

Durham-based Argolyn Bioscience Inc. filed for bankruptcy liquidation earlier this month.

The News & Observer of Raleigh reported that Argolyn's failure was tied to the disappointing performance of its lead drug candidate during the testing phase.

"It just wasn't potent enough to go forward," said Suzanne Cantando, a spokeswoman for Intersouth Partners, Argolyn's biggest investors, told the North Carolina newspaper. "This really is a rare example where I don't think the economy was responsible."

Argolyn, which became a private company in 2002, was for several years one of the brightest prospects in Charleston's technology industry. Since its launch from MUSC's Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the firm obtained several patents and almost $19 million in funding, including $16 million in capital investment in 2007.

It relocated most of its local operations in 2008 to the Raleigh Triangle area, which is a hotbed for pharmaceutical research and home Intersouth Partners, after it changed top management.

Argolyn's bankruptcy filing listed $73,342 in assets and $452,811 in liabilities.