Tyra Biosciences Secures $50 Million Series A Financing to Develop Novel Compounds Targeting Cancer Drug Resistance

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that on January 10, 2020, U.S. biotechnology company Tyra Biosciences announced the completion of a $50 million Series A financing round. The round was co-led by Alta Partners, RA Capital Management, Boxer Capital of Tavistock Group, and Canaan.

Tyra Biosciences plans to use the funds from this financing round to develop next-generation compounds to address resistance to current cancer therapies, and to advance these compounds into clinical trials, thereby improving the efficacy of cancer treatment.

Tyra Biosciences, founded in 2018 and headquartered in California, USA, was co-founded by CEO Todd Harris and COO Daniel Benson, and incubated by Alta Partners. Tyra Biosciences is a biotechnology company dedicated to developing compounds targeting drug-resistant cancer cells and drug-resistant populations.

Over the past two decades, the advent of precision oncology and the development of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have achieved significant progress in cancer treatment. However, as compounds have become more selective and potent, drug resistance has emerged as a major limitation in cancer therapy. Cancer cells are highly adaptable and can develop resistance to anticancer drugs; for patients who initially respond to cancer therapies, the impact of acquired resistance is nearly devastating. Leveraging insights from structure-based drug design (SBDD), kinase biology, computational chemistry, and intelligent clinical development, Tyra Biosciences is developing small-molecule drugs capable of targeting both wild-type (normal) and mutant drug targets, which may help mitigate this limitation to some extent.

Isan Chen, a member of Tyra’s Board of Directors, stated, “The demand from patients and the market for therapies addressing acquired drug resistance has never been greater. When resistance emerges, these drugs can serve not only as an immediate response but also as first-line treatments, with the potential to deliver superior efficacy and more durable responses compared to first-generation agents.”

The company stated that it believes the funding will provide sufficient runway to advance its first compound through proof-of-concept studies and clinical trials.

Gilla Kaplan, a member of Tyra’s Board of Directors, stated, “As a pioneering company focused on research into acquired drug resistance in oncology, Tyra Biosciences is well positioned to deliver solutions for patients. We boast a world-class team of drug development experts and advisors who can help effectively advance new therapies into the clinic.”

Alta Partners, founded in 1996, is one of the leading healthcare venture capital firms in the United States, having invested in many successful companies in the industry. Alta has offices in San Francisco and Denver.

RA Capital is a multi-stage investment firm founded in 2001 and headquartered in Massachusetts, USA. It is dedicated to making evidence-based investments in public and private healthcare and life sciences companies that are developing drugs, medical devices, and diagnostic procedures. The flexibility of its strategy enables RA Capital to provide seed funding to startups, as well as private financing, IPOs, and follow-on offerings for its portfolio companies. This approach not only facilitates cross-stage investing but also empowers management teams to drive value creation from inception through commercialization.

Boxer Capital is a private biotechnology investment firm headquartered in San Diego, California, dedicated to investing in the development of therapeutic drugs across multiple indications. Established in 2005 by the life sciences team of Tavistock Group, Boxer Capital maintains a focused portfolio of both public and private companies.

Canaan is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 1987 and headquartered in California, USA, dedicated to investing in entrepreneurs with visionary ideas. To date, the firm manages $5 billion in assets across diversified funds, has achieved hundreds of exits, and collaborates with entrepreneurs to build next-generation companies in consumer, fintech, frontier technology, biotechnology, and digital health sectors.

(Compiled by Yang Xiaohui)