Alloy Therapeutics and Pyxis Oncology Form Kyma Therapeutics to Develop Novel Immune-Modulating Antibodies for Cancer and Autoimmune Diseases

LEXINGTON, Mass. and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 25, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Alloy Therapeutics (“Alloy”) and Pyxis Oncology (“Pyxis”) today announced the formation of a joint venture named Kyma Therapeutics to develop immune-modulating antibodies for novel targets in cancer and autoimmune diseases. Kyma Therapeutics will advance programs directed to immune-modulating targets identified by Pyxis. Alloy Discovery Services will generate therapeutic candidates using Alloy’s broad suite of human antibody discovery technologies, including the ATX-Gx™ mouse platform while Pyxis will develop assays and perform ex-vivo and in-vivo studies on the therapeutic candidates.   

Under the terms of the agreement, Pyxis and Alloy intend to collaboratively fund and perform services for Kyma Therapeutics to rapidly develop programs to a value-inflection point with the objective that the programs will have the potential for independent financing and partnering. Pyxis and Alloy will retain certain rights to participate in the development and commercialization of products originating from Kyma Therapeutics.

“We are excited to partner with Pyxis on the formation of Kyma Therapeutics to advance novel biologics for cancer and autoimmune disease,” said Errik Anderson, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Alloy. “This joint venture combines Pyxis’ proprietary target discovery technology and expertise with Alloy’s high throughput antibody discovery engine, enabling the rapid development of high-impact immune-modulating therapeutics for underserved patient populations.”

Lara Sullivan, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Pyxis, added, “Kyma Therapeutics represents the successful execution of Pyxis’ and Alloy’s corporate strategies to bring new treatment options to patients with the highest capital efficiency. We look forward to working with Alloy to further advance these compelling treatments for patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases.”

Chris Pacheco, Venture Partner at 82VS, Alloy’s affiliated venture studio, added, “Kyma Therapeutics embraces a new approach to streamline biotechnology company creation and the drug discovery process, alongside leading scientific entrepreneurs and target-rich companies. We are thrilled to advance this important pipeline in partnership with Pyxis, which will ultimately be for the benefit of patients.”

The announcement follows in the footsteps of Broadwing Bio, a partnership between Alloy and Maze Therapeutics, which was formed in December 2020. Each year, 82VS is expected to launch five to ten new asset-centric companies such as Kyma and Broadwing, through partnerships with leading scientific entrepreneurs, large biopharma companies, and other target-rich venture-backed companies.

About Alloy Therapeutics
Alloy Therapeutics is a biotechnology ecosystem company empowering the global scientific community to make better medicines together. Through a community of partners, Alloy democratizes access to tools, technologies, services, and company creation capabilities that are foundational for discovering and developing therapeutic biologics. The company facilitates affordable, non-exclusive access to the entire drug discovery community from academic scientists, small and medium biotech, to the largest biopharma. Alloy’s lead offering, the ATX-Gx™ platform, is a human therapeutic antibody discovery platform consisting of a growing suite of proprietary transgenic mice strains. Founded in 2017 and privately funded by visionary investors, Alloy is headquartered in Boston, MA with European labs in Cambridge, UK. As a reflection of Alloy’s relentless commitment to the scientific community, Alloy reinvests 100% of its revenue in innovation and access to innovation.

Join the Alloy Therapeutics community by visiting alloytx.com, following Alloy on LinkedIn, or scheduling a 15-minute chat with Alloy’s Founder and CEO at alloytx.com/ceo.

About Pyxis Oncology
Founded by Longwood Fund, Pyxis Oncology is building a differentiated portfolio of biologics, including antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and immunotherapies, to improve the lives of patients with difficult-to-treat cancers. Pyxis is employing site-specific conjugation technology to develop highly stable ADCs with enhanced therapeutic indexes. Pyxis is also advancing a diverse portfolio of immunotherapies that target broad immune regulators as well as novel immune checkpoints identified through its immuno-oncology and cold tumor discovery efforts. For additional information, visit www.pyxisoncology.com.

Contacts
Alloy Media Contact
Erin Glabets
communications@alloytx.com

Pyxis Investor Contact
Ashley Robinson
LifeSci Advisors, LLC
arr@lifesciadvisors.com

Pyxis Media Contact
Jason Braco, Ph.D.
LifeSci Communications
jbraco@lifescicomms.com