US-based cancer treatment developer Kleo Pharmaceuticals has completed a $21m series B round that was led by PeptiDream and backed by fellow biopharmaceutical company Biohaven Pharmaceuticals.
Founded in 2015, Kleo Pharmaceuticals develops small molecule compounds which engage the body’s immune system to target cancer cells.
The company’s Antibody Recruiting Molecules (ARMs) technology enables Kleo’s compounds to bind together, redirecting the ARM-bound antibodies to target cancer cells without preventing the antibodies fulfilling their normal function.
The funding will be used by Kleo to advance its first next-generation candidates into human clinical studies with the view of reaching clinical testing in 2020. Biohaven supplied an undisclosed amount of series A funding for the company in 2016.
Patrick Reid, PeptiDream’s CEO, said: “We believe Kleo’s clinical candidates represent a paradigm shift in immuno-oncology development that elegantly delivers the therapeutic power of highly complex bi-specific antibodies, but in a more simple, less costly and potentially more beneficial manner.”