The concept of antibody-drug conjugates is very simple: attach the cancer-killing drug payload to the targeting antibody to guide the molecule to the cancer cell. Although these targeted therapies have gained a place in cancer treatment, one of their drawbacks is that some of the drugs will be lost prematurely, causing toxic effects on healthy tissues. The founders of Mythic Therapeutics stated that their technology ensures that more ADC drug payloads reach tumors, which may make these therapies more effective and easier to use for a wider range of patients.This startup is no longer invisible $103 million Build its case.
The Series B financing announced on Wednesday was led by Viking Global Investors.
Scientists have been studying ADCs for decades, and so far, 11 drugs in this category have been approved by the FDA. The first is Pfizer’s acute myeloid leukemia drug Mylotarg, which was approved in 2000 but has been plagued by toxicity issues, which has cooled the ADC field for many years.
Alex Nichols, CEO and co-founder of Mythic in Waltham, Massachusetts, said that toxicity has prevented ADCs from reaching their full potential. Although it is designed for targeted delivery, he said studies have shown that only 5% to 10% of the drug payload reaches the tumor. The remaining dose is used for healthy tissues, where it causes side effects, or it is simply degraded by the body without any therapeutic effect. Mythic’s technology increases the dose of the drug absorbed by the tumor, thereby increasing the therapeutic index of ADC-the effective dose range of the drug without causing adverse events.
“More drugs go where you want them, and fewer places where you don’t want them, and you will eventually increase the therapeutic index,” Nichols said.
The startup’s co-founder and chief scientific officer Brian Fiske (Brian Fiske) said that the way Mythic technology works is to change the way ADCs interact with their targets. He said that as a result, the drug has a higher targeting effect, which in turn reduces the number of toxic drugs reaching healthy tissues and triggers off-target effects. This technology, called FateControl, is compatible with drug payloads and linkers currently used for ADC drugs. In addition, FateControl has opened up new targets for ADCs, which may not have been feasible for ADCs in the past, Fiske said. He added that this technology could expand the group of patients who can be treated with this drug.
Lung cancer is Mythic’s first disease target. Nichols said that this type of cancer closely matches the startup’s technology, and it also offers the potential to expand the use of ADCs. None of the ADCs currently available are approved for lung cancer. Fiske stated that the company has found other goals that closely match FateControl, and that the company is pursuing these goals as it develops its pipeline. The targets for lung cancer and other types of cancer have not yet been disclosed, but Nicols says they are “both precedents and new targets.”
Both Nichols and Fiske are veterans of other biotech startups; Nichols is a founding team member of Cogen Therapeutics (now Repertoire Immune Medicines), and Fisk is the co-founder and CTO of Ohana Biosciences. Before founding Mythic, both worked at the venture capital firm Flagship Pioneering.
Mythic’s ADC method originated from a brainstorming session at Nichols’ table. Nichols said that he and Fiske started with a blank notebook and wrote down ideas on how to deal with cancer. Fiske said that they have noticed that targeted therapies have a great impact on some people, but most patients do not have access to these therapies. They use surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy as their main treatment options. The two decided to try to find ways to expand the number of cancer patients who can receive targeted therapy. With this concern, they turned to cancer experts, which in turn made them aware of the untapped potential of ADCs. Nichols and Fiske co-founded Mythic in 2017.
The launch of Mythic coincides with the recovery of the ADC field. Of the 11 ADCs currently approved by the FDA, 6 have entered the market in the past two years.The latest drug in this category is Tivdak, a Seagen drug, was approved in September for the treatment of recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer cases. The decision was approved in April Zynlonta, an ADC therapeutic drug for the treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
As these new ADCs enter the market, more and more new companies are emerging, with the goal of following them.The venture-backed ADC startups launched this year include Adcendo, Adcentryx, and Esoteric creatures. Pyxis Oncology, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has three ADC drug candidates and Pfizer-licensed ADC technology. In October, Pyxis’ IPO raised $168 million to use these molecules for human testing.
The competition with Mythic may come from one of the approved ADCs and other applications of this ADC in lung cancer. Nearly two years ago, ADC Enhertu from AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo was approved It is used to treat HER2 protein-positive breast cancer. September, partners Report The second stage data showed that using its ADC to solve the same goal in non-small cell lung cancer also showed a “robust and durable” tumor response.The result of the research is Publish In the New England Journal of Medicine.
Nichols and Fiske initially guided Mythic before raising seed funding in 2018. Venrock led the 2020 Series A financing. Nichols declined to say how much capital the startup has raised since its inception. Mythic’s new investors include Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, Foreste Capital, Perceptive Advisors and Highside Capital. Investors who joined the latest funding earlier include Venrock, First Round Capital, OMX Ventures, Lifeforce Capital, and Refactor Capital.
With the B round of financing, Mythic aims to advance its lung cancer ADC into clinical trials. The project is currently undergoing preclinical research and can support the submission of an investigational new drug application, but Nichols declined to predict when clinical trials can begin. He did say that the funding will support the lead plan through early proof-of-concept signals in the first phase of testing.
Although cancer is Mythic’s current focus, Nichols stated that FateControl can be used to develop drugs for other therapeutic applications. Immunology has also conducted research on ADCs, but Nichols declined to specify areas that the startup may pursue alone or with partners. Nichols said it is still too early and the company is not ready to introduce the study in detail.
“In general, any potential application where you want to use antibodies to ship goods is an application that our technology can benefit from,” he said.
Images of Flickr users Ed Osman Through knowledge sharing license
