Mariana Oncology Announces $175 Million Series B Financing to Advance Lead Radiopharmaceutical Candidate MC-339

On September 7, U.S. targeted radiopharmaceutical company Mariana Oncology announced the completion$175 Million Oversubscribed Series B Financing。

The company will use the funds to advance its leading radiopharmaceutical candidate. MC-339 And its precise radionuclide therapy.

This round of financing was led by Deep Track Capital and Forbion, with existing shareholders Atlas Venture, Access Biotechnology, and RA Capital Management, as well as new investors.Eli Lilly, Nextech Invest, Surveyor Capital followed with investments.

Incubated from investment institutions

Mariana Oncology, founded in 2021, is a biotechnology company jointly incubated by three renowned life science venture capital firms—Atlas Venture, RA Capital Management, and Access Biotechnology. These three institutions also participated in Mariana's $75 million Series A financing.

Simon Read is the founder, CEO, president, and board member of the company.Before founding Mariana Oncology, he was an entrepreneur-in-residence at Atlas Venture.

Simon served as the Chief Strategy Officer of Ra Pharma until the company was acquired by UCB Pharma.

Simon has over 25 years of experience in R&D, including leadership roles at GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, and Roche/Genentech, where he contributed to the clinical development of some of the most widely used drugs in the industry, includingRituxan(Rituximab) andActemra（Tocilizumab）。

He is also the co-founder and board member of molecular glue startup Triana Biomedicines, a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Q32 Bio, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (UK).

Received a Ph.D. from the University of Hertfordshire, UK, and studied physiology at the University of Manchester, UK, authoring over 50 peer-reviewed articles and patents.

Alonso Ricardo serves as the Chief Scientific Officer of Mariana Oncology.Previously, he was an entrepreneur-in-residence at RA Capital Management.

Like Simon, Alonso also worked at Ra Pharma, serving as the Chief Technology and Innovation Officer.

During this period, he led the discovery and early development of various experimental drugs, includingZilucoplan(An immunomodulatory peptide currently being evaluated in multiple phase 2/3 trials) and MK-0616(A first-in-class oral peptide targeting PCSK9).

Alonso has more than a decade of experience in drug discovery and development, leading scientific programs across multiple therapeutic areas including immunology, metabolic diseases, and oncology.

In addition, Dr. Alonso served as a professor at Los Andes University in Bogotá, Colombia, and as a researcher at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Harvard University.

Bernard Lambert is the Chief Technology Officer of Mariana Oncology.He once served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Telix Pharmaceuticals' U.S. operations.

Bernard Lambert

During this period, he led the regulatory and commercial operations for kidney cancer, prostate cancer, and brain cancer products in clinical stages and on the market, and spearheaded the U.S. team in obtaining FDA approval for a prostate imaging radiopharmaceutical. Illuccix。

He once served as the Vice President of CMC and Radiopharmaceutical Development at Zevacor Pharma, Zevacor Molecular, and IBA Molecular.

Dr. Bernard has more than 20 years of experience in all stages of the development of small molecule and antibody-based radiopharmaceuticals.

Sandy Mong is the Senior Vice President of Business Development and Operations at the company.Before joining Mariana Oncology, she was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Atlas Venture.

Sandy Mong

Sandy previously served as Vice President of Business Development and Operations at BridgeBio Pharma, focusing on the development and operations of single-asset subsidiaries, and supporting asset acquisitions and platform partnerships regardless of modality.

It is reported that Mariana Oncology currently has 50 employees.

Core Technology

Mariana Oncology is aFully IntegratedThe next generation of radiopharmaceutical companies, focusing on developmentNovel Targeted Peptide Radiopharmaceuticals。

The company's radiopharmaceuticals consist of conjugates rationally designed to target biological markers, delivering payloads of α or β emitting radionuclides.By designing molecules that penetrate solid tumors better than antibodies and deliver optimized high-radioactivity doses without the side effects associated with chemotherapy and toxin-based strategies.

Mariana Oncology is driven by tumor target biology, pairing ligand patterns with target characteristics.The ligand is designed to achieve deeper and more uniform tumor distribution as well as rapid systemic clearance, delivering drug properties not yet realized by existing approaches.

Drug Discovery Based on Macrocyclic PeptidesIt is crucial for Mariana Oncology's strategy targeting antigens with well-defined extracellular domains.

Among other high-value targets with less clear or脱落 structures, Mariana Oncology is adopting proprietary peptide and non-peptide approaches.

In addition to ligand discovery, Mariana Oncology's internal radiochemistry and radiobiology teams also utilizeα and β radionuclidesThe payload is built from scratch with the best performance balance.Radiopharmaceuticals.

Mariana Oncology's ligand design criteria include maximum potency, selectivity, stability, multi-parameter optimization of physicochemical properties, avoidance of drug efflux/uptake transporters, and the addition of linkers and chelation chemistry for radiological payloads.

The company leverages its R&D expertise and flexibility in peptide and non-peptide small molecule drug discovery to balance these factors.

InIn the view of Mariana Oncology,No Single Ligand Discovery Platform Fits All High-Value Oncology Targets。

Key aspects of target biology define the most appropriate choice, such as the presence or absence of a structured extracellular domain, whether the target is internalized and at what rate, and whether this is necessary for delivering a therapeutic payload to the cell.

In addition, other targets actively enter the circulation, leaving short "stumps" of near-membrane peptides, making it potentially challenging to obtain ligands with high affinity and selectivity.

In this regard, Mariana OncologyThe R&D team applies its expertise to a range of ligand platforms to select the most suitable approach for the target.

Currently, the company's core pipeline under research, MC-339, is a peptide small molecule that has been modified."Portable""Actinium" Payload, a targeted radiopharmaceutical for the treatment of small cell lung cancer, is expected to begin human trials next year.

Small cell lung cancer is a rare and aggressive type of lung cancer, characterized by rapid tumor progression, low patient survival rates, and limited treatment options. In 2020, out of approximately 2.2 million new cases of lung cancer globally, small cell lung cancer accounted for about 10-15%. The target of MC-339 has not been disclosed.

Last Words

DespiteMC-339 Still in the preclinical stage, but for this drug,The company's shareholders are quite satisfied.

"Forbion Managing Partner Geert-Jan Mulder, M.D., said, 'MC-339 has the potential to transform the treatment of small cell lung cancer by leveraging the advantages of peptide-enhanced tumor distribution to deliver actinium payloads.'"

It is reported that this is also Forbion Ventures Fund VI'sFirst Investment。

The high financing amount of $175 million, coupled with the strong support from a consortium of both new and existing investors, is a clear testament to Mariana Oncology's potential.

"Since our Series A financing round,Only 18 Months"We leverage our deep expertise in peptide discovery and radiochemistry to advance a diversified portfolio of novel molecules," said founder Simon Read, Ph.D.

Rebecca Luse, head of Deep Track Capital, said: "Mariana Oncology's product pipeline is innovative and differs significantly from the majority.""The number of existing radiopharmaceutical companies varies. We are interested in broader opportunities for radiopharmaceuticals beyond prostate cancer."

Rebecca Luse from Deep Track Capital and Geert-Jan Mulder, M.D., from Forbion will join the board of directors in connection with this financing.

Reference link:

https://www.marianaoncology.com/press-release/mariana-oncology-announces-175-million-series-b-financing/