Quentis Therapeutics Inc., a NYC-based biotechnology company pursuing next-generation immuno-oncology research and drug development, completed a $48m Series A financing.
The round was co-led by founding investor Versant Ventures and by Polaris Partners and the affiliated LS Polaris Innovation Fund, with participation from AbbVie Ventures, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Yonghua Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments and New York Ventures, the investment arm of Empire State Development. In connection with the financing, Amy Schulman, partner with Polaris Partners and LS Polaris Innovation Fund, will join Dr. Rizzuto, Michael A. Foley, Ph.D., Sanders Director, Tri-Institutional Therapeutics Discovery Institute, and Dr. Aberman on Quentis’ Board of Directors.
The proceeds will support the advancement of Quentis’ lead program, a small molecule IRE1α inhibitor, into the clinic in 2019 and through clinical proof-of-concept, the development of a pipeline of preclinical programs and the building out of the team.
Led by Michael Aberman, M.D., president and CEO, Quentis is advancing cancer immunotherapies that modulate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response pathways in the tumor microenvironment. The company was enabled by Highline Therapeutics, a Versant Ventures Discovery Engine, under an agreement with Weill Cornell Medicine through its office of Biopharma Alliances and Research Collaborations to establish New York-based spinout companies to advance breakthroughs emerging from Weill Cornell Medicine research.
Quentis’ scientific foundation is based on landmark research conducted by Laurie Glimcher, M.D., previously Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine, now President and Chief Executive Officer of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Professor at Harvard Medical School, and Juan Cubillos-Ruiz, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine.
FinSMEs
28/02/2018