K36 Therapeutics, a company developing breakthrough therapies for the unmet medical needs of cancer patients, said it raised $30 million in a series A financing that will be used to advance its lead candidate through its first clinical proof-of-concept studies in patients with the rare cancer multiple myeloma.
Photo: Terry Connolly, president and CEO of K36
F-Prime Capital, Atlas Venture, and Eight Roads Ventures co-led the financing.
The company’s lead candidate, KTX-1001, is a first-in-class, selective inhibitor of the histone methyltransferase (HMT) MMSET, which is overexpressed in up to 20 percent of multiple myeloma patients due to a t(4;14) translocation. K36 plans to submit an IND for KTX-1001 in the first half of 2022.
K36 Therapeutics was established almost a year ago with the mission to translate epigenetic modulation of oncogenic pathways into first-in-class small molecule therapies. The company obtained exclusive worldwide intellectual property rights to KTX-1001 from Novartis Pharmaceuticals.
“We are developing KTX-1001 to provide a targeted therapy that specifically addresses the underlying cause of cancer for these multiple myeloma patients,” said Terry Connolly, president and CEO of K36. “KTX-1001 will be the first therapeutic agent to enter the clinic that directly targets overexpression of MMSET.”
K36 also announced that industry veteran, Lori Kunkel, has joined the company’s board of directors, bringing with her more than two decades of experience in oncology and immunology drug development, commercialization, and corporate strategy.
“Direct inhibition of MMSET as a potential treatment for high-risk t(4;14)-positive multiple myeloma has been eagerly pursued for many years, and I am delighted to be working with the team who is first to take this precision medicine to the clinic,” said Kunkel.
K36’s Board of Directors is comprised of Chong Xu, partner, F-Prime Capital; Jason Rhodes, partner, Atlas Venture; Lori Kunkel, independent director; and Terry Connolly, president and CEO of K36 Therapeutics.
Author: Rare Daily Staff
Stay Connected
Sign up for updates straight to your inbox.