PR Newswire Asia - 制藥在線英文

KAHR Medical Ltd., a biopharmaceutical company developing a novel drug platform based on bi-functional, immunotherapeutic fusion proteins known as Dual Signaling Proteins ("DSP") today announced that it has raised US$18 million from a global syndicate of leading investors. Completion of the financing round is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to occur early next month.

The round was led by Flerie Invest AB, Oriella Limited, Hadasit Bio-Holdings (HBL), Pavilion Capital and Mirae Asset Venture Investment. Proceeds will be used for advancing the Company's next generation immuno-oncology drug candidates including the clinical development of the Company's lead product, DSP107, an anti-CD47 therapy for the treatment of solid tumors through a Phase I/II study and the preclinical advancement of additional pipeline projects.

In September 2019, KAHR Medical announced a clinical collaboration with Roche to evaluate KAHR Medical's lead program, DSP107, a SIRPα-41BBL DSP, in combination with Roche's PD-L1-blocking checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab (Tecentriq®) in patients with advanced NSCLC who are refractory to existing immune checkpoint inhibitors. KAHR Medical expects to begin a Phase I/II trial in H2 2020 at leading sites in the US to evaluate DSP107 as a monotherapy and in combination with atezolizumab, following the filing of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food Drug Administration (FDA).

"We are grateful to our existing investors for their continued support and are pleased to welcome Oriella, a prominent private equity and technology investor in Israel, with an expanding focus on life sciences," said Yaron Pereg, Ph.D., CEO of KAHR Medical. "We are also proud to have Pavilion Capital join our investor base. Pavilion Capital brings a track record of success and expertise in the biopharmaceutical sector. We look forward to using this funding for advancing our next-generation immuno-oncology pipeline for the benefit of patients, who are non-responsive or refractory to existing immunotherapies."

"We are excited to lead this financing round for KAHR Medical together with other distinguished investors," said Thomas Eldered, Chairman of Flerie Invest AB. "Despite advances in the treatment of cancer, there is still a clear need for additional therapies to broaden the patient population that will respond to cancer immunotherapies. We look forward to supporting KAHR Medical in developing effective treatments for cancer patients." 

Mr Vincent Tchenguiz, a British entrepreneur and beneficiary of the trust that owns Oriella commented, "We recognize the strength of KAHR Medical's proprietary platform and believe that the company's products have the potential to offer unique value to patients suffering from cancer. We are keen to work with the Company as it matures, and we look forward to helping it fulfil its mission of bringing new therapies to cancer patients."

Timothy Low, Head of Healthcare Investments, Pavilion Capital, said, "We are delighted to join KAHR Medical's syndicate of investors, and believe the company has a tremendous opportunity to contribute new targeted therapies to the field of immuno-oncology." 

Michel Habib, CEO of HBL, stated, "HBL has been supporting KAHR Medical since its inception and we are very pleased with the company's impressive development. We are proud to continue to support the company together with other existing and new global investors and look forward with anticipation to the beginning of clinical trials." 

About DSP107 and the Phase I/II study
DSP107 targets CD47-overexpressing tumors, simultaneously blocking macrophage inhibitory signals and delivering an immune costimulatory signal to tumor antigen-specific activated T-cells.  CD47 is overexpressed on many cancer cells and binds SIRPα on immune phagocytic cells to produce a "don't eat me" signal.  DSP107 binds CD47 on cancer cells, blocking interaction with SIRPα and thus blocking the "don't eat me signal".  Simultaneously, DSP107 binds 41BB on T-cells, stimulating their activation. These activities lead to targeted immune activation through both macrophage and T-cell mediated tumor destruction.  In combination with atezolizumab, DSP107 has the potential to enhance anti-tumor immune response. 

The planned Phase I/II study will evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of DSP107 in advanced solid tumors. The safety and preliminary efficacy of both DSP107 monotherapy and combination therapy with atezolizumab will be evaluated in patients with advanced NSCLC who are refractory to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. KAHR Medical will be the sponsor of the study and Roche will provide the clinical supply of atezolizumab.

About KAHR Medical
KAHR Medical develops the next generation of immuno-oncology drug candidates for the treatment of multiple types of cancer. Its proprietary technology enables the construction of targeted bi-functional biological drugs generated by fusion of the active extracellular domains of a TNF-SF ligand and a type-I membrane protein. DSPs have two functional ends, which can simultaneously block and/or activate two reinforcing biological signals resulting in a synergistic outcome.  The unique DSP composition ensures target activation and increased potency by assembling a high multimer protein structure which is essential for activation of the TNF receptor family.

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