Carmot Therapeutics – a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing disease-modifying therapies for metabolic diseases – recently announced a $150 million oversubscribed and up-sized Series E financing. This financing round was led by Deep Track Capital. The syndicate also included new investors 5AM Ventures, Franklin Templeton, Frazier Life Sciences, Janus Henderson Investors, Millennium Management, TCGX, Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, and existing investors RA Capital Management, The Column Group, and Willett Advisors.
The proceeds from the funding will be used to strengthen Carmot’s broad portfolio of clinical and preclinical assets designed to modulate gut hormones that are central to energy homeostasis.
Carmot’s pipeline includes:
— CT-388 (once-weekly, dual GLP-1/GIP receptor modulator) which is currently in a Phase 1/2a clinical trial in overweight and obese adults with and without type 2 diabetes (T2D). Results from the multiple ascending dose cohorts will be presented at the 83rd American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions. Additional Phase 2 trials in obese adults are planned to begin in 2023.
— CT-868 (once-daily, dual GLP-1/GIP receptor modulator) which has completed a Phase 1 clinical trial in overweight and obese otherwise healthy adult volunteers, a Phase 2 trial in obese patients with T2D, and a mechanism of action (MOA) study in obese adults with and without T2D to assess its impact on glucose homeostasis. Results from the latter study will be presented at the 83rd American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions. Carmot has recently initiated another Phase 1 MOA study in overweight and obese patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and expects to initiate a Phase 2 proof-of-concept clinical trial in overweight and obese patients with T1D in the second half of this year.
— CT-996 (oral, small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist), which has recently initiated a Phase 1 clinical trial in overweight and obese otherwise healthy adults.
— A long-acting peptide tyrosine-tyrosine (PYY) analog, which is in late preclinical development.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are thrilled to have such a reputable group of life science investors who value and recognize the progress we’ve made to date and share our vision of treating obesity and diabetes with novel incretin modulators. With three clinical-stage candidates currently in development, this financing enables us to continue to advance clinical trials that will yield key data readouts this year and through 2024.”
— Heather Turner, Chief Executive Officer of Carmot
“Carmot is improving the mechanistic understanding of how complex signaling pathways can be tuned to better address the root causes of disease. By making subtle improvements in molecular design, Carmot may be able to achieve clinically relevant tolerability and efficacy benefits. The company’s potential to develop best-in-class disease-modifying therapies closely matches our approach to healthcare investing.”
— Tim Kutzkey, PhD, a founding board member
