US-based cancer treatment developer Catamaran Bio launched yesterday with $42m of series A funding from investors including Takeda Ventures and Astellas Venture Management, subsidiaries of pharmaceutical firms Takeda and Astellas.
The round was co-led by venture capital firms Sofinnova Partners and Lightstone Ventures and was also backed by healthcare fund manager SV Health Investors, the company’s founding investor.
Founded in September 2019, Catamaran is developing cell therapies for a broad range of cancers, including solid tumours. It aims to deliver off-the-shelf drugs, as opposed to some cell therapy treatments that require samples extracted from the patient.
The startup will use the funding to progress two lead programmes into the clinic and upgrade its underlying cell engineering technology. Rob Woodman, senior partner at Takeda Ventures, is joining its board of directors in conjunction with the round.
The original version of this article appeared on our sister site, Global University Venturing.