On April 03, 2024 Obsidian Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering engineered cell and gene therapies, reported it has closed a significantly oversubscribed $160.5 million Series C financing with a top-tier syndicate of life science investors led by new investor, Wellington Management (Press release, Obsidian Therapeutics, APR 3, 2024, View Source [SID1234641757]). Additional new investors participating in the financing include Foresite Capital, Janus Henderson Investors, Novo Holdings A/S, Paradigm BioCapital, RTW Investments, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., and Woodline Partners LP. Existing investors Atlas Venture, Blue Owl Healthcare Opportunities, Bristol Myers Squibb, Deep Track Capital, Logos Capital, RA Capital Management, TCGX, Samsara BioCapital and Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company) also participated in the financing.
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Proceeds from the financing will advance Obsidian’s lead engineered tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) program, OBX-115, in its ongoing trials for patients with melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The Company is focused on enrolling patients and reaching key clinical and regulatory milestones, as well as manufacturing scale-up ahead of pivotal trial readiness.
The Company also announced the appointment of Ray Camahort, Ph.D., Partner in the Venture Investments group at Novo Holdings US, to its Board of Directors. "Obsidian’s engineered TIL cell therapy is highly differentiated and has the potential to bring transformational efficacy to patients with solid tumors," said Dr. Camahort. "We look forward to supporting Obsidian’s team on their journey to bring OBX-115 to additional patients."
"Wellington is excited to be supporting Obsidian through its next phase of growth, as the Company continues demonstrating the potential of OBX-115 to address the unmet need of patients with immune checkpoint inhibitor-resistant advanced or metastatic melanoma. The Company has been generating momentum with its novel cytoDRiVE technology and advancing OBX-115 into late-stage clinical trials," commented Irina Margine, Ph.D., Biotech Sector Lead at Wellington Management.
"The strong demand and support from this syndicate of premier investors is a testament to the promise of OBX-115 for patients with treatment-resistant advanced melanoma," said Madan Jagasia, M.D., M.S., Chief Executive Officer of Obsidian. "This financing provides funding through key clinical readouts in melanoma and is the catalyst to continue expanding OBX-115 into NSCLC, where there is significant potential and high unmet need."
About OBX-115
Obsidian’s lead investigational cytoTIL15 program, OBX-115, is a novel engineered tumor-derived autologous T cell immunotherapy (tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte [TIL] cell therapy) armored with pharmacologically regulatable membrane-bound IL15 (mbIL15). OBX-115 has the potential to become a meaningful therapeutic option for patients with advanced or metastatic melanoma and other solid tumors by leveraging the expected benefits of mbIL15 and Obsidian’s proprietary, differentiated manufacturing process to enhance persistence, antitumor activity, and clinical safety of TIL cell therapy. OBX-115 is being investigated in two ongoing and enrolling clinical trials in advanced or metastatic melanoma and NSCLC (NCT05470283 and NCT06060613).