Nov. 14 Quick Takes: TPG leads $85M B round for ADC play MBrace

Rutgers University start-up MBrace Therapeutics Inc. raised $85 million in a series B round to fund clinical development of antibody-drug conjugates that it hopes will be first in class. The biotech plans to start Phase I trial by year-end of its lead candidate, EPHA5-targeting MBRC-101, to treat solid tumors. Although Eph receptors and their ephrin ligands are not new to cancer, BioCentury’s BCIQ database lists no therapies in development against EPHA5. TPG led the round, with participation from new investors Avidity Partners and Cowen Healthcare Investments, and two of the company’s series A investors, Venrock and Alta Partners. TPG’s Carolyn Ng and Avidity’s Monal Mehta will join MBrace’s board in connection with the financing, along with XinThera Inc. CEO Christopher LeMasters. Led by co-founder, President and CEO Isan Chen, MBrace has raised $110 million since its founding in June 2020.

Andera Partners, Bpifrance and M Ventures led a new €67.5 million ($72.2 million) series C round for neoantigen vaccine developer Nouscom AG. The Basel, Switzerland-based biotech’s lead program, NOUS-209, targets 209 neoantigens and is in a Phase II study to treat mismatch repair-deficient/microsatellite instability-high (dMMR/MSI-H) metastatic colorectal cancer. Also participating were new investors Revelation Partners, Indaco Venture Partners, Panakès Partners and XGen Ventures, as well as existing investors 5AM Ventures, EQT Life Sciences, and Versant Ventures...