BRIEF—Vicinitas Therapeutics launches with $65 million Series A

Vicinitas Therapeutics, a biotechnology company advancing a proprietary targeted protein stabilization platform to develop novel therapeutics in cancer and genetic disorders, has announced its launch and a $65 million Series A financing.

This spin-out company resulted from the Deubiquitinase Targeting Chimera (DUBTAC) platform, which was developed through an academic-industry research collaboration between the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research and researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

The USA-based company aims to use its DUBTAC platform to stabilize and restore the levels of degraded proteins that cause disease. DUBTACs are bifunctional small molecules consisting of a protein-targeting ligand connected via a linker to a deubiquitinase recruiter.

The financing was co-led by US venture capital firm a16z and Deerfield Management, with participation from Droia Ventures, GV, the venture capital investment arm of Alphabet, The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research and the Berkeley Catalyst Fund.