The team that steered a clinical-stage cancer drug to an acquisition by Eli Lilly is back at it again, unveiling a new venture supported by $177 million for a pipeline of precision medicines addressing unmet needs in oncology.
The startup and its management come from Scorpion Therapeutics. Lilly’s acquisition of Scorpion closed in March, a deal that committed up to $2.5 billion for that biotech’s most advanced program, which had reached Phase 1/2 testing in breast cancer. But Lilly only wanted that drug, a selective PI3K-alpha inhibitor. The rest of Scorpion’s assets were to be spun out into a new company. That startup, Boston-based Antares Therapeutics, launched Tuesday.
Scorpion was founded in 2020 by serial biotech entrepreneur Gary Glick. The startup had gone on to raise a total of $420 million to support its research. Similar to other startups founded by Glick, Scorpion developed drugs that address validated targets that for one reason or another, had been deemed undruggable. The company discovered and developed molecules to hit these elusive targets by using technologies that integrate cancer biology, medicinal chemistry, and data sciences.
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Antares is continuing biopharma industry partnerships begun under Scorpion. An alliance started in 2022 with AstraZeneca is focused on cancer drugs that target transcription factors, proteins that control gene expression and regulate cellular processes vital to cancer cells. The deal gave AstraZeneca the exclusive option to license rights to up to three drug candidates.
In 2023, Scorpion began a partnership with Pierre Fabre to develop two non-small cell lung cancer drugs, both small molecule inhibitors of mutant EGFR protein. On Tuesday, Antares announced that Pierre Fabre will lead the continued clinical development of both programs. Antares is in line to receive milestone payments tied to the progress of both drugs.
Antares the company is named for the star Antares. It’s the brightest star in the Scorpius constellation and is also known as “the heart of the scorpion.” The biotech isn’t disclosing details about its pipeline, other than that its programs are small molecules and they come from Scorpion. Antares expects its most advanced program will enter the clinic in 2026; “multiple additional programs” are in preclinical development, according to the company’s website.
“We are committed to leveraging our expertise to address well-validated, first-in-class targets across oncology and other serious diseases, and to continuing to execute a fast-to-clinic strategy to bring medicines to patients in need,” Adam Friedman, former Scorpion CEO and now Antares chief executive, said in a prepared statement.
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Antares’s Series A financing was co-led by Omega Funds, Atlas Venture, Lightspeed Venture Partners, BVF Partners, and Cormorant Asset Management. The round included participation from Vinyanshu Ventures, Abingworth, Invus, Tenmile, Vida Ventures, and Willett Advisors.
Photo: Ilia Smirnov, Getty Images