Synthorx Files for IPO to Advance Next-Generation Cytokine Therapeutics

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VCBeat (WeChat: vcbeat) has learned that Synthorx, a company based in San Diego, California, is planning an initial public offering (IPO) on November 14 local time to raise funds for advancing its next-generation cytokine therapeutics. According to documents filed with securities regulators, the company aims to raise $100 million and has applied for listing on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “THOR.”

Synthorx is a biotechnology company that leverages synthetic biology technologies to discover and develop novel protein therapeutics. The company stated that it plans to use the proceeds to advance its lead candidate, an interleukin-2 (IL-2)-based oncology therapeutic, through dose-expansion trials, and to build upon this foundation to develop drugs for the treatment of other immune-mediated diseases.

Synthorx’s unique platform expands the chemical and structural repertoire of protein therapeutics, employing novel approaches unattainable by other technologies to modulate the pharmacological properties of biologics. Founded in 2014 based on pivotal discoveries from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in the United States, the company is developing a novel class of proteins known as cytokines, which can regulate immune and inflammatory responses. Synthorx states that its platform introduces new DNA base pairs into Escherichia coli, thereby compelling the bacteria to produce various synthetic amino acids, which enables the development of improved versions of cytokine-based drugs.

Approximately six months ago, the company completed a $63 million Series C financing round, led by OrbiMed, with participation from new investors Medicxi and Osage University Partners, as well as existing investors Avalon Ventures, RA Capital Management, and Correlation Ventures.

Avalon is the company’s largest shareholder, holding nearly one-third of its shares. The other two major shareholders are Boston-based RA Capital and OrbiMed, which hold 28% and 22% of the shares, respectively. In its prospectus, Synthorx stated that it plans to conduct studies on THOR-707 as a monotherapy for solid tumors and in combination with an immune checkpoint inhibitor. The company also announced plans to develop a standalone IL-2 program for the treatment of chronic autoimmune diseases, aiming to identify candidates that overcome the limitations of current IL-2 therapies for such conditions, particularly their short half-life. Synthorx indicated that it plans to begin filing for clinical trials in 2020, initially focusing on chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), atopic dermatitis, and Crohn’s disease.

In 2017, Jay Lichter, a partner at Avalon and CEO of COI, briefly served as the interim CEO of Synthorx. Today, the biotechnology company is led by President and CEO Laura Shawver, who has held the position for approximately one year. This August, the company appointed Joseph Leveque as Chief Medical Officer. Leveque previously worked at Armo Biosciences, a cancer drug development company that was acquired by Eli Lilly and Company for $1.6 billion earlier this year.

Synthorx is a biotechnology company that leverages synthetic biology technologies to discover and develop novel protein therapeutics. Its expanded genetic alphabet technology platform possesses the unique capability to site-specifically incorporate multiple synthetic amino acids into proteins, thereby enhancing the efficacy and safety of protein drugs.