Biotechnology has emerged as one of the most promising areas of the fast-evolving knowledge economy. Zumutor Biologics Inc, a biotech start-up based in Boston, USA, with its R&D centre in Bengaluru, is making a positive impact in the long and arduous road of cancer research and is a start-up to watch out for.
Founded in 2013, Zumutor’s key drivers to success include a platform approach to novel therapeutics, an experienced antibody engineering team, global advisors and investors. It is focused on developing unique novel therapeutics in immuno-oncology.
It is dealing with Immuno-Oncology, which is a branch of medical science that boosts the immune system to fight cancer. The company has developed a proprietary INABLRä platform consisting of multiple high diversity human antibody libraries which are mined through a combination of yeast and phage display technologies. Their proprietary Human Antibody platform named INABLR is the genesis to their wholly owned, first-in-class therapeutic antibodies which target innate immunity and regulate the tumor micro environment.
The platform is superefficient in rapid identification and isolation of novel antibody clones against any antigen target. The high diversity libraries and screening platforms could be customised to suit complex requirements of the project. The antibody clones are completely human by design and therapeutically favourable.
Funding Matters
As expected, the innovative Boston -based start-up attracted handsome funds. In December 2021, Zumutor Biologics garnered 6.2 million USD Series A4 funding led by Accel, Bharat Innovation Fund (BIF) and Siana Capital. Earlier, Zumutor Biologics raised capital from Chiratae Ventures, Aarin Capital, and Karnataka Information Technology Venture Capital Fund (KITVEN). In September 2019, the company raised 4 million USD as Series A2 funds.
By August 2023, the company had raised a total of 27 million USD from a strong syndicate of investors which include Accel Partners, Bharat Innovation Fund, Siana Capital, Aarin Capital, Chiratae, KITVEN.
Significant Developments
In end of May 2018, Syngene International, an innovation-led contract research, development and manufacturing organisation offering integrated scientific services from early discovery to commercial supply, entered into a non-exclusive partnering agreement with Zumutor Biologics, to access Zumutor’s proprietary naïve human phage/yeast display library.
In February 2020, Catalent, a contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) partner for personalised medicines, blockbuster drugs and consumer health brand extensions, announced that it had signed an agreement with Zumutor Biologics, Inc. to manufacture Zumutor’s lead candidate, ZM008, for the treatment of solid tumors.
In August 2023, Zumutor Biologics Inc announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had granted the company’s Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the novel drug ZM008 to initiate a Phase 1, first-in-human, clinical study for the treatment of multiple solid cancers.
FDA also accepted the “safety first” staggered parallel clinical design of ZM008 combination arm with Pembrolizumab to benefit a wider range of patients whose immune response could be boosted with ZM008 followed by Pembrolizumab treatment to obtain favourable disease responses.
“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of ZM008 IND application is an important milestone for Zumutor and a clear recognition of the intriguing preclinical data supporting novel/non overlapping mode of actions, generated thus far. Our work to translate the promise of Zumutor’s INABLRä platform into improved and more potent human antibody products for patients in need will delve further into unique immune pathways involving NK cells and other innate immune compartments,” said Dr. Maloy Ghosh, Chief Scientific Officer, Zumutor Biologics.
NK cells are the short form of natural killer cells. According to British Society for Immunology, “NK cells are best known for killing virally infected cells, and detecting and controlling early signs of cancer. As well as protecting against disease, specialised NK cells are also found in the placenta and may play an important role in pregnancy.”
“We believe that newer therapies like ZM008 will usher in more options for patients and translate to better clinical outcomes. We anticipate start of Phase 1 studies in Q4 2023,” said Kavitha Iyer Rodrigues, Founder/ CEO of Zumutor. Till August 2023, Zumutor’s pipeline had two more assets targeting NK cell activation pathways involved in antitumor functions.
On October 2023, Zumutor entered into a collaboration with Enzene Biosciences Ltd. – a global firm dedicated to utilise advanced technologies to fast-track antibody discovery and development, and improve chances of success in clinic.
The partnership between Enzene and Zumutor reinforces their pledge to deliver crucial drug products that would benefit patients globally. Towards this, Enzene would be leveraging Zumutor’s INABLRä antibody discovery platforms and human antibody libraries as it expands its discovery offering portfolio, and would provide impetus to onboarding integrated programs.
“This partnership grants Enzene’s clients access to Zumutor’s antibody libraries and integrated antibody discovery technologies – thereby increases the probability of success in early drug discovery with qualified leads. A combination of Zumutor’s INABLR platform and Enzene’s extensive experiences in antibody drug manufacturing technologies creates a unique end-to-end platform for therapeutic antibody discovery and development. The focus of this partnership is speed and design – with extensive quality parameters required to develop biologic drugs for global markets,” said Dr. Maloy Ghosh.
From these developments in the recent years, we can infer that Zumutor is headed for making the future significantly better for cancer afflicted patients.
