WATERTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Blend Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company discovering new classes of medicines to treat debilitating diseases, announced today that it has secured a $16 million Series B financing. Blend is pioneering an integrative model for discovering novel molecular entities with new mechanisms of action purposely designed for Blends proprietary nanoparticles. By synergistically developing both the molecule and the nanoparticle together, Blend can make medicines more targeted, more effective and more tolerable.
NanoDimension led the Series B round with participation from other existing investors, Flagship Ventures and New Enterprise Associates. Proceeds from the financing will be used to expand Blends product and business development teams and to advance the companys lead programs through studies to enable filing of an investigational new drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The funding will enable Blend to pursue its initial focus in oncology as the company continues research and development of new classes of platinum drugs. The company will expand the development of its proprietary molecules for oncology, which include a portfolio of mono-functional platinums that have an entirely different mode of DNA platination and unprecedented biological differentiation compared to that of existing platinum drugs. Blends platinum drug discovery program is fueled by chemical insights provided by structural and innovative mechanistic studies of Dr. Stephen J. Lippard, who is a founder of Blend and the Arthur Amos Noyes Professor of Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Blend has made great progress translating its novel, integrated, new molecule discovery engine and nanoparticle engineering platform into exciting first-in-class product candidates in oncology, commented Ed Kania, Managing Partner and Chairman of Flagship Ventures. We share the patient-focused and product-driven vision of the team at Blend, and we are excited to be joining with NanoDimension and NEA to support the Blend team with our collective resources and strategic reach as they advance their anti-cancer drug candidates.
This Series B investment clearly recognizes the value that the Blend team created since the last financing a year ago and will enable the company to pursue untapped opportunities with broad potential impact in oncology as we develop cancer therapies with superior selectivity and efficacy, said Mark Iwicki, President and Chief Executive Officer of Blend Therapeutics. With several product candidates in multi-billion dollar categories in our pipeline, this financing will allow us to advance two lead molecules through IND-enabling studies, each of which involves a novel platinum molecule with new modes of action for cancer therapy.
About Blend Therapeutics
Blend Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company discovering new classes of medicines that have unique modes of action to result in drugs with differentiated therapeutic properties. Our proprietary technology, assets and expertise are built around an integrative R&D process that brings together our new-molecule drug discovery engine and our patented nanoparticle engineering platform. Using its drug discovery approach, Blend has created a pipeline of new molecules and is initially focused on developing innovative cancer drugs. The company was founded by three leaders in the fields of chemistry and nanomedicine from the Brigham and Womens Hospital (BWH)Harvard Medical School (HMS), and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): Dr. Omid Farokhzad of BWHHMS, and Dr. Robert Langer and Dr. Stephen J. Lippard of MIT. Blend has attracted top-tier investors including Flagship Ventures, NanoDimension, and New Enterprise Associates. For more information, visit http://www.blendtx.com.
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Blend Therapeutics Closes $16 Million in Series B Financing