KisoJi Biotechnology Inc., a company focused on the discovery and development of transformative antibody therapeutics, announces that it has raised $41 million in equity, including the conversion of previously funded convertible debentures. These funds will be used to advance its lead asset, KJ-103, the first potent naked antibody against TROP2, into the clinic to treat solid tumours. Funds will also be used to deploy its cutting-edge antibody discovery platform towards new multi-specific therapeutic antibody drugs in cardiometabolic disease, as well as immunology and inflammation. The financing was led by Investissement Quebec and Lumira Ventures with participation by Fonds de solidarite FTQ, adMare BioInnovations, and Remiges Ventures.
As previously announced, KisoJi has established a clinical development partnership with Cancer Research UK to bring KisoJi’s lead asset, KJ-103, into a first-in-human clinical trial of approximately 100 patients. KJ-103 is highly differentiated from existing TROP2-targeting drugs on the market or in development, which are antibody drug conjugates (ADCs). KJ-103 does not require a cytotoxic payload but instead functions by recruiting immune cells to kill tumour cells.
The financing will also support the deployment of KisoJi’s cutting-edge antibody discovery platform, including the first of its kind antibody paratope map (KisoSeekTM) that effectively visualizes an immune response against a given target. The Company’s sampling tools allow it to maximize paratope diversity in a directed iterative strategy to focus on distinct antibodies and uncover novel biology, including functional GPCR antibodies.
KisoSeekTM is more efficient and provides greater insights than traditional antibody discovery methods and can integrate seamlessly into existing workflows. All existing data, whether positive or negative, can be used to augment a target specific paratope to supercharge antibody discovery instead of relying on traditional methods of random screening.
KisoJi has also developed a suite of camelid transgenic mice (KisoMouse®) that generate single domain antibodies to continue populating the world’s largest single domain antibody database created by KisoJi over the past 8 years. The paratope map and antibody database can be used to generate first-in-class and best-in-class multi-specific antibodies using KisoJi’s modular multi-specific antibody format (KisoBodyTM). The KisoBodyTM is easily customizable and manufacturable with tri-specific antibody titers at greater than 6 g/L in commercial production cell lines.
Bicha Ngo, President and CEO, Investissement Québec, said: “By contributing to KisoJi Biotechnology’s financing round, Investissement Québec is reaffirming its commitment to supporting innovative companies in the life sciences industry, a key sector for the Québec economy. This funding will allow KisoJi Biotechnology to hit critical milestones in its operations, from completing preclinical activities to launching clinical trials, notably through a landmark agreement with Cancer Research UK, one of the world’s largest funders of cancer research, all the while helping move innovations from the R&D stage to the marketplace.”
Daniel Hétu, Managing Director, Lumira Ventures, said: “KisoJi has built a truly differentiated, AI enabled and comprehensive antibody discovery platform leveraging the deep expertise of their team that spans transgenic mice, single-domain antibodies and AI. Lumira is proud to have supported the development of KisoJi’s innovative platform from its inception and we look forward to continuing to work with the company and our co-investors as KisoJi transitions its propriety programs to the clinical stage.
Maxime Pesant, Vice-President Private Equity and Impact Investing | Life Sciences, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, said: “The Fonds de solidarité FTQ is proud to reiterate its commitment to KisoJi, an innovative company of which we have been partners from the very beginning alongside Lumira. Our strategic investments in the sector help propel high-potential biotechs to new heights. With major expertise in the life sciences field and with our long-term presence, the Fund continues to support high-impact companies like KisoJi, paving the way for groundbreaking innovations and significant medical advancements.”
David Young, co-founder and CEO of KisoJi said: “Through the support of our new and existing investors, this financing will enable KisoJi to continue its development of pipeline assets in oncology, cardiometabolic and immunology indications using our cutting-edge platform and AI tools.”
Evolution Venture Partners acted as the exclusive strategic advisor to KisoJi in connection with the financing.
About KisoJi Biotechnology
KisoJi is a Canadian biotechnology company that deploys the latest scientific and AI tools to conduct therapeutic antibody discovery in a fundamentally new way. KisoJi has developed a multi-species transgenic mouse to generate highly diverse single domain antibodies, as well as a modular multi-specific antibody scaffold with high stability and productivity. Most recently, KisoJi has used advanced AI tools to visualise the universe of all antibodies against a target in order to uncover novel biology and new therapeutic antibody capabilities for its partners and its own pipeline.
About KJ-103
KJ-103 is a single domain antibody that binds to a unique epitope on TROP2. It acts via effector cell mechanisms, including the activation of macrophages, to kill tumour cells. KJ-103 has been shown to have significant anti-tumour potency with no evidence of toxicity or resistance across a number of preclinical solid tumour models. KJ-103 was humanised by LifeArc.
KisoJi Biotechnology Contact:
Investors and Media
Argot Partners
Sam Martin/Cameron Willis
KisoJi@argotpartners.com
+1 212 600 1902