Biocon informed the stock exchanges on Wednesday about the investment, following which its holding will drop to under 20% and it won’t be an associate company, going forward.
Bicara, founded in 2020 and based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a clinical-stage biotechnology company currently developing dual-action biologics to produce a potent and durable immune response.
Proceeds from the Series C round of funding will be used to support the continued advancement of Bicara’s lead product candidate, BCA101, a statement from the startup said.
BCA101 is a dual-action and bifunctional antibody designed to restrain the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and disable transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) directly at the tumour site.
“Momentum at Bicara is increasing following our BCA101 Phase 1/1b data presentations at key 2023 medical meetings. Our proof-of-concept data in frontline HPV-negative R/M HNSCC, a very difficult patient population to treat, underscore the promise of BCA101 as a new precision therapeutic option for these patients,” Claire Mazumdar, a Ph.D and MBA holder and chief executive of Bicara Therapeutics, said in the statement.
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With additional data readouts anticipated in 2024, Mazumdar added that the company is excited about the overall potential of BCA101 to help patients with HPV-negative R/M HNSCC as well as other solid tumour types. With the completion of the Series C financing, Bicara has raised $273 million in 2023, the statement added.
Apart from the fundraise, the company said it has also onboarded Carolyn Ng, a Ph.D. holder and business unit partner with TPG’s Life Sciences Innovation (LSI) fund.
