CytoCan Corp. Secures Tens of Millions in Seed Funding to Advance Multispecific Protein Therapeutics Amid the Fourth Wave of Pharmaceutical Innovation

Today, the biotechnology company Saitkang, which focuses on the research and development of multispecific fusion protein drugs (CytoCan Corp.) announced that it had exceeded its target in raising tens of millions of yuan in seed financing, led by Forcefield Venture, with participation from XtalPi and Bopu Capital. Saidekang possesses independently developedAbZed Protein Module Technology Platform, enabling the design and precise delivery of multispecific fusion protein therapeutics targeting a broad range of immunotherapy targets, such as those for cancer, thereby precisely enhancing immune attack and yielding targeted macromolecular drugs with higher potency and resistance to drug resistance. Currently, Saithekon has developed multiple pipeline projects, among which the HER2-targeted anticancer drug developed in collaboration with XtalPi has advanced to the Preclinical Candidate (PCC) stage. This round of financing will be used to further develop and optimize the AbZed platform technology, expand Saithekon’s product pipeline, and accelerate the progression of pipeline candidates into clinical studies.

The emergence of multispecific drugs marks the fourth revolutionary wave in pharmaceuticals, holding immense application potential. Unlike traditional single-target drug interfaces, multispecific drugs can form multiple drug–target binding interfaces. By leveraging antibodies or high-affinity peptides to precisely deliver drug molecules or immune factors to the surface of tumor cells, they enhance therapeutic efficacy or elicit stronger immune attacks. This approach yields agents with greater potency and reduced susceptibility to resistance, while expanding development pathways for targeted therapies through more diverse mechanisms of action.

Dr. Zhang Hongtao, Founder of Saidekang

Cytokinetics was co-founded by Dr. Zhang Hongtao, an Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and Professor Mark Greene, a pioneer in HER2-targeted therapy. The team has dedicated many years to targeted therapy and immunotherapy. Based on their research achievements, they developed the blockbuster antibody drug Herceptin, which reached a peak annual global sales of $7.3 billion and accumulated total sales of $100 billion. Dr. Zhang Hongtao, CEO of Cytokinetics, is committed to targeted and immunotherapy for cancer. He developed fusion protein platforms such as AbZed, which can customize the design of multifunctional recombinant proteins with immunotherapeutic effects, much like assembling LEGO bricks, empowering the development of precision therapeutic drugs for cancer and immune diseases.

As a pioneer in the field of multispecific drug development, Saidikang'sAbZed Protein Module Technology PlatformIt is currently the only multispecific recombinant protein platform capable of “carrying” antibody molecules.As a delivery hub, AbZed can flexibly form complexes with antibody molecules in vivo, recruiting endogenous antibodies to induce “antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity” (ADCC), thereby effectively extending the half-life of recombinant proteins. Targeting diverse surface antigens on cancer cells, AbZed can precisely deliver immune cytokines or bispecific antibodies loaded at its other terminus into the tumor microenvironment, enhancing immune-mediated killing and enabling safe, highly effective targeted immunotherapy. In animal model studies, the AbZed multispecific protein designed against the HER2 tumor target demonstrated superior anticancer activity compared with monoclonal antibody drugs, and also exhibited robust anticancer efficacy against tumors that had developed drug resistance, validating the therapeutic advantages and substantial druggability potential of the next-generation AbZed macromolecular therapeutics.

Sedecor'sAbZed Protein Module Technology Platform, enabling the expansion of targeted drug development through more advantageous druggability mechanisms, with broad applicability to a range of cancer and immunotherapy targets, enabling the development of a competitive pipeline of multispecific biomolecules, enhancing the potency and safety of targeted therapies, and significantly shortening the R&D cycle for innovative drugs through a modular research and development approach.

Currently, the company’s most advanced pipeline candidate has entered the Preclinical Candidate (PCC) stage. With the support of this round of financing, Saidakang will continue to optimize the sequence of the AbZed protein molecule, further expand its product pipeline targeting a range of cancer indications, and prioritize accelerating the development of its most commercially promising programs, including breakthrough therapies for HER2-positive cancers. Saidakang will also actively broaden collaborations with other industry leaders and academic institutions to further drive innovation in the biotechnology sector.

Concurrently, this round of financing will further support the drug R&D collaboration between Sidekang and XtalPi, one of the lead investors in this round. The two companies will leverage their respective strengths,Combining XtalPi’s AI Antibody Drug Design Technology with SaidikangAbZed Protein Module Technology Platform: Collaborative Development of Next-Generation Targeted Immunotherapeutics.

XtalPi is a company thatIntelligent and AutomatedAs a drug R&D technology company driven by innovation, its AI-enabled next-generation antibody drug development platform integrates classical antibody screening experimental methods, intelligent computing technologies, and automated platforms. By adopting a novel approach to rational protein design, the platform will support Saitkang’s R&D efforts in related antibody therapeutics, optimizing key properties of multispecific drugs, including stability, druggability, and immunogenicity.

In Saitaikang’s HER2-targeted multispecific fusion protein project, XtalPi will leverage XactDeXign^TMThe macromolecular design platform assisted Saidekang in further AI-driven optimization of the AbZed protein to enhance its activity and druggability, leveraging XupremAb.^TMThe antibody discovery platform screens antibodies against multiple targets, extending AbZed’s advantages to new targets beyond HER2 and comprehensively validating the platform’s strengths.

In this regard,Dr. Wen Shuhao, Co-founder and Chairman of XtalPi“The team led by Dr. Zhang Hongtao possesses a profound theoretical foundation in the field of cancer targeted therapy, along with extensive research and practical experience in AbZed fusion protein studies. We look forward to forming a strong partnership with this team, which has already successfully developed a blockbuster anticancer drug valued at over $100 billion. By leveraging XtalPi’s next-generation AI-powered antibody drug discovery platform, we aim to accelerate Sitidecan’s breakthroughs in the treatment of HER2-positive cancers and other indications, while identifying additional promising targets. This collaboration will equip AbZed’s modular ‘precision-guided’ technology with an AI-driven booster, empowering the Fourth Drug Revolution to deliver transformative new therapies for cancer patients in China.”

For this round of collaboration and financing,Dr. Zhang Hongtao, Founder of Saidekang“We are honored that our technology has gained recognition from investors. This significant investment will help us push the boundaries of targeted therapy. With the support of XtalPi’s AI-powered antibody drug discovery platform, we look forward to leveraging AbZed’s platform advantages more rapidly and comprehensively, expanding into additional novel targets, bringing more advanced R&D concepts to the industry, and delivering more effective therapeutic drugs to patients.”

Dr. Xiaowen Feng, Partner at Forcefield Venture“It indicates that drug development has now entered a fourth wave, with multispecific universal drug modality design platforms serving as the core driving force behind this industrial revolution. AbZed is an innovative modular technology suited for producing multispecific recombinant protein molecules, which can significantly enhance drug R&D efficiency. If the industrialization of AbZed can be achieved promptly, Saidikang will have the opportunity to become a revolutionary pioneer in the fourth wave and secure a prominent position in future drug development.”

Saidekang is a startup biopharmaceutical R&D enterprise focused on the research, development, and commercialization of targeted immunotherapies for cancer, aiming to meet the medical needs of cancer patients in China and worldwide. Leveraging its proprietary AbZed protein module technology platform, Saidekang can customize multispecific proteins that outperform monoclonal antibodies by targeting molecules on the surface of cancer cells. These proteins enable the targeted delivery of immune cytokines to the tumor microenvironment, thereby achieving the goal of targeted immunotherapy.

XtalPi is a drug R&D technology company driven by intelligence and automation, committed to revolutionizing the pharmaceutical industry by enhancing the speed, scale, innovation, and success rate of drug development. As an enterprise headquartered in China and the United States while serving clients globally, XtalPi remains dedicated to exploring optimal solutions that leverage cutting-edge R&D and computational resources to maximize value for customers and partners.

XtalPi’s intelligent drug discovery platform integrates cloud-based supercomputing digital R&D tools with advanced experimental capabilities, forming a research and development system in which high-precision predictions and targeted experiments mutually validate and inform each other. As one of the global pioneers in AI-driven drug discovery, XtalPi has established a comprehensive R&D iteration process that tightly couples quantum physics-based dry lab computations with advanced wet lab experiments, challenging the efficiency bottlenecks of traditional drug development and empowering breakthroughs in both the speed and scale of innovative new drug discovery.