DURHAM – CoImmune, which formerly was known as Argos Therapeutics, has closed on $45 million to help fund its efforts to combat cancer with immunotherapy.
CoImmune was acquired by two South Korean firms in 2019.
The new funds will be used to fund an ongoing clinical trial of its lead treatment candidate and oher trials for CAR T-cell therapy, a type of treatment in which a patient’s T cells (a type of immune system cell) are changed in the laboratory so they will attack cancer cells, according to Cancer.gov.
Two South Korean companies – SCM Lifescience Co., Ltd. and Genexine, Inc. – acquired Argos for $11 million, according to the Korea Herald. The deal included Argos’ manufacturing facility.
Dr. Lucio Rovati, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientific Officer of the FIDIM Group, an Italian company, led the financing.
“With this new round of capital, CoImmune is well positioned to accelerate the development and advancement of our lead programs which are based on encouraging prior or on-going clinical trial results. These proceeds will allow us to initiate six planned clinical trials with three products by 2022,” said Charles Nicolette, Chief Executive Officer of CoImmune, in a statement.
Durham biotech CoImmune (formerly Argos) acquires cancer-focused pharma
