KAHR announced $46.5 million funding round to advance its immunotherapeutic pipeline

KAHR, a company that develops novel multifunctional immuno-recruitment proteins for cancer immunotherapy, has today announced the closing of a $46.5 million to help with the development of DSP107, a targeting fusion protein for the treatment of solid and hematological tumors. The round was led by aMoon with participation from new investors BVF Partners LP, DAFNA Capital Management LLC, Peregrine Ventures, Shavit Capital, and the Cancer Focus Fund. Existing investors who participated in this round include Flerie Invest AB, Oriella Limited, Pavilion Capital, Hadasit Bio Holdings Ltd, and Mirae Asset.

"The successful financing round of this respected syndicate of investors is a testament to our breakthrough technology platforms and promising next-generation multifunctional, immunotherapeutic pipeline," said Yaron Pereg, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of KAHR. "Cancer treatment is challenging in that cancer cells continuously change and develop resistance to existing treatments. Another notable hurdle is the ability of cancer cells to evade recognition and elimination by the body’s own immune system. Our novel, multi-pronged product candidates are specifically designed to address these challenges by unmasking cancer cells for immune recognition, and at the same time, providing signals to effectively trigger a targeted synergistic activation of anticancer immunity."

The round will be used to advance the clinical development of KAHR’s lead product candidate, DSP107. It can be used for the treatment of solid and blood cancers, as well as the development of its preclinical pipeline including DSP502.

"Our unique approach positions us in the forefront of cancer immunotherapy, and through this financing, we can continue to advance our clinical asset and accelerate our preclinical projects into clinical development across multiple cancer indications for the benefit of patients who are non-responsive or refractory to existing immunotherapies," added Dr. Pereg.

Gur Roshwalb, MD, Partner, aMoon, added: “KAHR’s multifunctional immunotherapeutic platform has enormous potential to address unmet needs in immuno-oncology. We are particularly excited about KAHR’s differentiated first-in-class CD47x41BB targeting compound, which potentially harnesses both the innate and adaptive immune systems to target solid and hematologic tumors.”

KAHR develops smart immune-recruitment cancer drugs that can activate a targeted immune response by converting cancer camouflage into areas for the immune system to then attack. Its CD47x41BB targeting compound effectively binds cancer cells and immune cells, linking them together for maximal activation of the immune system against the tumor. Its latest round follows an $18 million C round in February 2020 and brings its total funding to $76.5 million.