Solve Therapeutics Announces Mission to Advance Novel Antibody-Based Therapies Against Cancer-Specific Targets

• Venture-backed biopharmaceutical company headquartered in San Diego and led by veteran drug developers with strong track records of success
• Pursuing novel antibody-based therapeutics, including monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and bispecific antibodies
• Current $126M raise provides runway into mid-2025, supporting discovery through Phase 1 clinical proof-of-concept (POC)

SAN DIEGO, Dec. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Solve Therapeutics, Inc. (SolveTx), an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company, announced today its mission to develop novel antibody-based therapies targeting tumor-specific antigens. The company's formation reunites the former VelosBio Inc. (VelosBio) team, a highly experienced group with a proven ability to rapidly advance innovative therapeutics that address unmet medical needs in the treatment of cancer. SolveTx is supported by an accomplished board of directors and a top-tier investor syndicate. The company is fully operational with 25+ employees and is actively pursuing discovery and development efforts at its 10,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art laboratory in San Diego.

SolveTx's management team is headed by Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dave Johnson. In previous roles as CEO, Mr. Johnson oversaw the development of a best-in-class Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor, acalabrutinib, at Acerta Pharma (established in 2012 and acquired by AstraZeneca for $7B in 2016) and a first-in-class, anti-ROR1 ADC, zilovertamab vedotin, at VelosBio (established in 2017 and acquired by Merck for $2.8B in 2020). The founding members of SolveTx from VelosBio who have worked with Mr. Johnson to establish the new company include Langdon Miller, MD, Executive Vice President of Development and Chief Medical Officer; Brian Lannutti, PhD, Executive Vice President of Research; Jeff Watkins, PhD, Senior Vice President, Protein Technology; and Katti Jessen, PhD, Senior Vice President, Translational Sciences. Collectively, SolveTx management possesses extensive expertise in drug discovery, development candidate selection, investigational new drug application (IND)-enabling evaluation, clinical trial conduct, and business development.

SolveTx's initial $126 million Series A financing was completed with a syndicate of top-tier venture capital firms including Matrix Capital Management, Decheng Capital, General Atlantic, and Surveyor Capital/Citadel, each represented on the company's board of directors.

"I am delighted to reassemble this highly collaborative and successful team of drug developers," said Dave Johnson, CEO of SolveTx. "Together with this incredible group of investors, we are empowered to apply our expertise and resources toward the ultimate goal of prolonging and improving the lives of patients with cancer."

SolveTx will use the proceeds for production of antibody-based therapeutics for nonclinical POC characterization, producer cell line generation, good manufacturing practices (GMP) drug production, IND-enabling pharmacology and toxicology studies, and Phase 1 clinical program initiation.

The foundation of SolveTx's approach to oncology therapeutics development is the identification of novel cancer-specific targets and the generation of mAbs with ideal characteristics to serve as the backbones for antibody-based therapeutics. The company has signed a licensing agreement with the University of California San Diego for a series of antibodies that show high reactivity with tumors and no or low reactivity with normal tissues, which may enable the selective killing of tumor cells and a broad therapeutic index. SolveTx is reviewing other potential in-licensing opportunities as well as performing in-house antibody discovery research. The company's focus is on the development of novel mAbs, ADCs incorporating next-generation linker and payload constructs, and bispecific antibodies.

Contact
Yakov N. Kogan, PhD, MBA
Senior Vice President, Operations & Alliances
Solve Therapeutics, Inc.
[email protected]

SOURCE Solve Therapeutics, Inc.