Versant-backed Tempest grabs a $70M round with plans to drive a slate of I/O drugs into the clinic
The booming cancer drug R&D field can count one more player with some big dreams to pursue in immuno-oncology.
San Francisco-based Tempest Therapeutics is making its debut today after landing a $70 million B round, fueling the work of the startup team assembled at Versant Ventures — which provided a preclinical pipeline that features some new contenders in some fast-growing niches.
At the front of the queue is TPST‐8844, an IDO inhibitor which will look to make a rep for itself as Incyte and Bristol-Myers Squibb push more advanced programs. Then there’s TPST-1120, a PPARα blocker designed to inflame the tumor microenvironment and activates important tumor‐killing immune cells. And they are also engaged on E‐prostanoid (EP) receptor antagonists, looking to interrupt the immuno‐suppressive effects of prostaglandin.
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