Adaptam Therapeutics raises €3M to target tumour immune evasion — TFN

Spanish biotech startup Adaptam Therapeutics has raised €3 million in a pre-seed financing spherical led by Criteria Bio Ventures. The funding will speed up the event of Adaptam’s first-in-class antibody-based therapies, together with antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and bispecific antibodies, aimed toward treating a number of types of most cancers.

Breaking the obstacles of the tumour microenvironment

Whereas immunotherapy has revolutionised most cancers care, many sufferers nonetheless see restricted outcomes. The principle wrongdoer lies inside the tumour microenvironment (TME), a posh community of cells that may suppress immune exercise. In stable tumours, immunosuppressive myeloid cells, notably tumour-associated macrophages (TAMs), play a central position in weakening T-cell responses.

Adaptam’s method focuses on disrupting this suppression. By concentrating on novel glyco-immune checkpoints which might be selectively expressed on these myeloid cells, the corporate seeks to reawaken the physique’s immune system to recognise and destroy most cancers cells. This might mark a significant advance for sufferers who haven’t responded to current immunotherapies.

From educational perception to medical innovation

Adaptam was based from the pioneering analysis of Prof. Asis Palazon at CIC bioGUNE in Bilbao, Spain. His work on immune regulation in most cancers laid the inspiration for the corporate’s scientific technique. The startup was fashioned with steering from Standards Bio Ventures, which contributed to Adaptam’s company design and early operations. Palazon’s analysis additionally obtained help from the “la Caixa” Basis by way of a Caixa Analysis Well being grant in 2021.

The corporate is now getting ready to maneuver its lead packages into the preclinical part. This step will probably be essential in validating its novel targets and therapeutic mechanisms throughout a number of oncology indications.

Constructing momentum for a brand new class of therapies

Becoming a member of Adaptam’s board are Salvatore Cappadona, PhD, and Pablo Cironi, PhD, each representing Standards Bio Ventures. Their experience will assist steer the corporate by way of its subsequent part of progress and guarantee its analysis transitions effectively from the lab towards medical testing.

As Adaptam advances, its ambition is to create a brand new technology of most cancers immunotherapies that overcome immune resistance and ship lasting advantages for sufferers with stable tumours. With this financing, the Spanish biotech is positioning itself as a rising pressure in precision oncology, bridging cutting-edge science with significant therapeutic affect.

“Immunosuppressive myeloid cells inside tumours current one of many hardest challenges in immunotherapy immediately. Our aim is to neutralise this impediment by creating therapies that particularly goal these cells, providing sufferers new hope the place conventional approaches have failed,” mentioned Asis Palazon, PhD, founder, CEO and CSO of Adaptam. “The help from Standards Bio Ventures permits us to take a step ahead in attaining our mission. We at the moment are actively planning our subsequent funding spherical to help IND-enabling research.”

“We’re thrilled to help Adaptam in its mission to remodel most cancers therapy by concentrating on the immunosuppressive cells inside the TME. The scientific breakthroughs achieved by Prof. Asis Palazon and his crew have laid the groundwork for doubtlessly life-changing therapies,” mentioned Pablo Cironi, PhD, chairman of the Adaptam board. “With this robust basis, we consider Adaptam is well-positioned to ship new, efficient remedies for sufferers with stable tumours, addressing vital gaps in present immunotherapy choices.”

“CIC bioGUNE’s long-standing management in glycobiology supplied the scientific basis for Adaptam, and we’ve got supported the corporate from its earliest steps by way of to immediately’s preclinical maturation,” mentioned Prof. Jesús Jiménez-Barbero, scientific director of CIC bioGUNE.

“Adaptam’s differentiated method on the intersection of myeloid-mediated immunosuppression and glycobiology represents a one-of-a-kind imaginative and prescient uniquely positioned to unlock the subsequent frontier in most cancers immunotherapy. We’re proud to have partnered with Asis Palazon to construct this thrilling new enterprise and help its subsequent part of growth. We’re assured that Adaptam’s rising pipeline affords a game-changing alternative to remodel most cancers therapy for a lot of sufferers,” mentioned Salvatore Cappadona, PhD, board member of Adaptam.