A San Diego biotech has set out to solve the formula for best-in-class antibody-drug conjugates, raising $120 million with support from Big Pharma Merck & Co. to fuel its efforts.
Solve Therapeutics’ new fundraise was led by oncology-focused VC Yosemite, with participation from new investors Abingworth and Merck, plus existing investors Alexandria Venture Investments and Citadel’s Surveyor Capital, among others.
The $120 million round builds off a $75 million fundraise secured at the end of last year and brings Solve’s total capital raised to $321 million, according to a Nov. 17 release. The company is not classifying the round type, a spokesperson told Fierce.
Solve will use the new oversubscribed round to advance its two clinical ADCs and build out its proprietary linker platform, dubbed CloakLink. The biotech has designed the platform to boost ADC stability and reduce payload hydrophobicity—which is the tendency to repel water and can impact the quality of an ADC—across a range of drug-to-antibody ratios.
In theory, the resulting drug class will be defined by improved pharmacokinetics and plasma stability, plus lower toxicity, according to Solve.
The biotech’s lead programs—coded SLV-154 and SLV-324—are both covered by CloakLink and are currently in phase 1 trials for patients with metastatic solid tumors.
The two ADCs are also being used in tandem with Solve’s novel diagnostic platform that is supposed to allow for precise, noninvasive patient selection.
The new cash infusion will help Solve complete two phase 1b studies for the assets, while also expanding its operational capabilities, according to the release.
“Solve is the next wave of ADC innovation,” Dan McHugh, Yosemite investor and Solve board member, said in the release. “By integrating therapeutic development with a novel diagnostic platform, Solve is pushing the boundaries of precision oncology and enabling a more personalized, effective approach to cancer care.”
The biotech is led by co-founder and CEO Dave Johnson, who previously helped create and helmed ADC biotech VelosBio. The company was acquired by Merck in 2020 for $2.75 billion, with the pharma picking up ROR1-directed zilovertamab vedotin from the buyout.
Johnson is joined by VelosBio and Acerta Pharma alum Brian Lannutti, who serves as Solve’s executive vice president of R&D.