Company Formed by Alamar Biosciences and Frazier Life Sciences
Attobody™ Platform Generates Small Format Binders for Hard-to-drug Targets
FREMONT, Calif. and MENLO PARK, Calif., June 20, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Alamar Biosciences, a company powering precision proteomics to enable the earliest detection of diseases, and Frazier Life Sciences, announced the launch of Attovia Therapeutics, a newly formed company focused on creating a pipeline of biotherapeutics in immune-mediated disease and cancer. The company, based on Attobody™, Alamar’s novel proprietary biparatopic nanobody platform, concurrently closed a $60 million Series A financing led by Frazier and joined by venBio and Illumina Ventures.
Attovia will receive an exclusive world-wide license to the Attobody platform and associated intellectual property and pipeline assets in the therapeutic field in exchange for equity and potential milestones and royalties. The company plans to use the proceeds from the Series A financing to achieve clinical proof-of-concept on its lead program in immune-mediated disease, nominate additional development candidates across the company’s core areas of focus in immunology and oncology, as well as continue to advance the core Attobody technology platform.
“By creating Attovia with Frazier and other investors, we can give the Attobody platform the dedicated attention and resources it deserves to fully realize its potential,” said Yuling Luo, Ph.D., founder, chairman and CEO of Alamar and co-founder of Attovia. “Alamar scientists developed the Attobody platform to improve the affinity and specificity of antibodies and we are very excited to expand its applications to therapeutic development.”
Tao Fu, M.S., M.B.A., co-founder of Attovia and Venture Partner at Frazier Life Sciences, will serve as Attovia’s chief executive officer and join the Board. Mr. Fu is a seasoned industry leader with over 25 years of executive experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, including leadership roles at Zai Lab, Portola Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Johnson & Johnson. Attovia’s leadership team is fully rounded out by Petter Veiby, Ph.D., chief scientific officer; Hangjun Zhan, Ph.D., chief technology officer; and Zaneta Odrowaz, Ph.D., chief business officer.
“The ability to combine two nanobodies into a single biparatopic Attobody creates opportunities to fine-tune therapies for specific targets and to expand the target universe,” said Mr. Fu. “I am excited to be partnering with a proven executive team, leading investors and an experienced board to develop medicines for some of the most prevalent disorders that still do not have ideal therapeutic solutions.”
