Tarveda Therapeutics, Inc. a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing Pentarins™ as a new class of potent and selective cancer medicines, today announced the completion of a $30 million Series D equity financing. The round was led by new investor Versant Ventures. Existing investors New Enterprise Associates, Novo A/S, NanoDimension and Flagship Pioneering also participated.
Tarveda plans to use these financial resources, in addition to the $38 million raised in its Series C financing in January 2016, to advance its novel Pentarin platform. Planned development activities include completing Phase I dose-escalation and safety studies of PEN-221, a miniaturized conjugate targeting somatostatin receptor 2 (SSTR2), which is expressed in neuroendocrine and small cell lung cancers, and initiating and advancing its Phase 2A studies. Further, the Company is funded to conduct Phase I dose-escalation and safety studies of PEN-866, a miniaturized HSP90-targeting drug conjugate for use in advanced, topoisomerase 1-sensitive cancer patients, as well as to develop additional candidates from the Pentarin platform.
“Versant’s investment reflects our strong conviction in Tarveda’s Pentarin platform to generate potent and selective miniaturized drug conjugates with a range of payloads to treat a variety of indications in oncology. Tarveda’s rapidly maturing pipeline, including two clinical-stage candidates, demonstrates the prolific nature of the Pentarin discovery and development engine,” commented Guido Magni, MD, PhD, and Partner at Versant Ventures. “We are pleased to participate alongside this high-quality syndicate of investors and Company leadership as Tarveda continues to drive value from the Pentarin platform.”
With this investment, Dr. Magni will join Tarveda’s Board of Directors.