US-based immunotherapy developer OncoResponse closed a $40m series B round yesterday featuring Helsinn Investment Fund, the investment vehicle for cancer drug developer Helsinn Group.
RiverVest Venture Partners led the round, which included Alexandria Venture Investments, a subsidiary of real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities, as well as Arch Venture Partners, HT Family Office, Canaan Partners, Qatar Investment Authority, Redmile Group and William Marsh Rice University.
OncoResponse is developing antibodies intended to harness the body’s immune system to combat specific cancer targets. It was spun out of MD Anderson, the cancer research and treatment centre owned by University of Texas.
The funding will support the progress of five immuno-oncology drug candidates into preclinical or clinical testing.
Clifford Stocks, OncoResponse’s chief executive, said: “We now have several antibodies from our cancer patient-derived platform that are directed at modulating immunosuppression of the tumour microenvironment.
“This new capital will allow us to advance our programs through pre-clinical development and enable us to move our lead programs into clinical studies.”
The company completed a $22.5m series A round in March 2017 that included Helsinn Investment Fund and Alexandria Real Estate Equities as well as $3m from Baxalta, the biopharmaceutical company latterly acquired by pharmaceutical firm Shire.
HT Family Office, GreatPoint Ventures, Arch Venture Partners, Canaan Partners William Marsh Rice University and MD Anderson also participated in the series A round.