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South San Francisco, CA, July 12, 2021, — Evelyn Wang, PhD has joined Circle Pharma as its Vice President of Translational Medicine and will lead Circle’s translational team in its development of macrocycle therapeutics against intractable cancer targets.
Dr. Wang has over 20 years of experience developing and applying advanced techniques in translational biology. She most recently served as the Executive Director of Translational Medicine at Exelixis, where she was responsible for leading all translational medicine from pre-IND through development across multiple programs and was a member of the clinical development team. Earlier in her career, Dr. Wang was the Director of Translational Research at BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc., where she was the translational research lead for the Poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor Talazoparib, which is now marketed by Pfizer for BRCA-mutated HER2-negative breast cancer. Prior to her role at BioMarin, she held leadership positions in Translation Medicine for several pipeline candidate programs in an earlier engagement at Exelixis and was the Founding Director of the Stanford Proteomics and Integrative Research Facility. Dr. Wang was awarded a doctorate in biochemistry and pathology from New York University Medical Center and was a postdoctoral fellow at MIT / Harvard Medical School where she conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Hidde Ploegh.
“We are delighted to have Evelyn join the Circle team” said Raj Singh, PhD, Circle’s Chief Scientific Officer. “Evelyn brings a wealth of translational medicine experience to Circle having successfully led teams advancing multiple oncology programs into the clinic in her prior roles. She is joining us as our work against the cyclin targets is generating exciting data and we are excited to have Evelyn to help us drive these and other programs to the clinic.”
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery deploying structure-based rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by multiple routes, including oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle drug discovery & development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclin proteins, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls progression of cells through the growth and division cycle. Inhibition of cyclin A is synthetically lethal to cancer cells that carry mutations causing dysregulation of the Rb pathway – such mutations are frequently found in small cell lung cancer. Cyclin E upregulation is found in many tumor types including uterine and ovarian cancer and is often associated with resistance to widely used cancer therapies, including trastuzumab and cdk4/6 inhibitors.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contact: info@circlepharma.com
Eleonor Lim: 650.825.4099
Read original article at Business Wire
South San Francisco, CA, June 16, 2021, — Circle Pharma, Inc., a macrocycle drug discovery and development company focused on intractable cancer targets, today announced that it has raised $66 million in an oversubscribed Series C financing.
The financing was co-led by The Column Group and Nextech Invest. All investors from the prior round participated in the Series C, including Pandect Bioventures, together with new investors including Euclidean Capital, Pavillion Capital, Hartford HealthCare Endowment and Eli Lilly and Company.
Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance the Company’s wholly-owned cyclin-targeted programs towards the clinic, with potential applications in Rb-dysregulated cancers such as small cell lung cancer and cyclin E dependent malignancies, including ovarian cancer. In addition, the Company will apply its macrocycle platform to other precision oncology targets that have a clear therapeutic rationale but are considered undruggable with small molecules.
“Circle has made excellent progress since its Series B financing last year and we are very pleased to have co-led this round with Nextech Invest,” said Peter Svennilson, managing partner at The Column Group. “We look forward to seeing Circle’s pioneering macrocycle platform bring highly innovative, first-in-class therapies to patients.”
“We are deeply appreciative of the continuing support of our existing investors and welcome the support of a strong group of new investors in this financing,” said David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., Circle’s President and CEO. “The funding will help drive our progress to the clinic and support the addition of new pipeline programs.”
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery deploying structure-based rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by multiple routes, including oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle drug discovery & development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclin proteins, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls progression of cells through the growth and division cycle. Inhibition of cyclin A is synthetically lethal to cancer cells that carry mutations causing dysregulation of the Rb pathway – such mutations are frequently found in small cell lung cancer. Cyclin E upregulation is found in many tumor types including uterine and ovarian cancer, and is often associated with resistance to widely used cancer therapies, including trastuzumab and cdk4/6 inhibitors.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contact: info@circlepharma.com
Eleonor Lim: 650.825.4099
Read original article at Business Wire
February 1st, 2021 4:00 AM Pacific Standard Time
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — (Business Wire) — Constantine Kreatsoulas, PhD has joined Circle Pharma as its Vice President of Research Informatics and Computational Chemistry.
Dr. Kreatsoulas joins Circle from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) where he was the Head of US Molecular Design and Interim Head of Computational Toxicology. His responsibilities at GSK included leading structure-based drug design (SBDD) teams and the development of informatics tools for quantitative experimental data analytics and drug hazard identification. Previously he was a Research Fellow at Merck & Co., Inc., where he focused on SBDD, molecular modeling, machine learning, and small molecule safety assessment and a postdoctoral fellow at Bristol-Meyers Squibb focused on machine learning in predictive toxicology. Dr. Kreatsoulas was awarded a doctorate in chemistry from Princeton University, holds a master’s degree in regulatory affairs and quality assurance from Temple University and received a BA in mathematics and chemistry from New York University.
“We are delighted to welcome Constantine to the Circle team” said Raj Singh, PhD, Circle’s Chief Scientific Officer. “Constantine brings over two decades of experience spanning molecular modeling and design for early drug discovery through development, high performance scientific computing, and toxicology modeling. We are excited to add Constantine’s experience to our team as we add new targets to our discovery pipeline and advance our cyclin programs towards the clinic.”
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibition of Cyclin A has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers driven by mutations in the Rb pathway. Cyclin E upregulation is associated with resistance to drugs that target cdk4/6 activity and is also found across several cancer types.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contact: info@circlepharma.com
Eleonor Lim: 650.825.4099
Read original article at Business Wire
October 26, 2020 5:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — (Business Wire) — James Aggen, PhD has joined Circle Pharma as its Vice President of Medicinal Chemistry and will lead Circle’s chemistry team in its discovery and development of macrocycle therapeutics against intractable cancer targets.
Dr. Aggen has over 20 years of experience in medicinal chemistry. He most recently served as the Senior Director of Medicinal Chemistry at Revolution Medicines and earlier in his career held positions at Oligiasis, Achaogen, Chemocentryx, Gilead Sciences and Theravance. In addition, Jim held the role of Associate Professor of Medicinal and Natural Products Chemistry at Northeastern University. He also served in the US Marine Corps Reserves. Dr. Aggen was awarded a doctorate in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of California, Irvine, where he studied under Prof. Richard Chamberlin.
“We are delighted to have Jim join the Circle team,” said Raj Singh, PhD, Circle’s Chief Scientific Offer. “Jim brings deep medicinal chemistry experience and has successfully led teams engaged in targeted drug discovery against multiple oncology targets including mTORC1 and KRAS. Notably, Jim also has experience in the medicinal chemistry of larger molecules, having been the project lead from inception to IND submission for the novel aminoglycoside antibiotic plazomicin which is now marketed as Zemdri. We are excited to add Jim’s experience to our team as we work to bring Circle’s cancer therapies to patients.”
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibition of Cyclin A has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers driven by mutations in the Rb pathway. Cyclin E upregulation is associated with resistance to drugs that target cdk4/6 activity and is also found across several cancer types.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contacts
Eleonor Lim: 650.825.4099
info@circlepharma.com
Source: Circle Pharma, Inc.
Read original article at Business Wire
October 21, 2020 4:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — (Business Wire) — Circle Pharma, Inc., a macrocycle drug discovery and development company focused on intractable cancer targets, has appointed Prof. Alan Ashworth, PhD, FRS and Bruce Stillman, PhD, FRS to its Scientific Advisory Board.
Prof. Ashworth is the President of the University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology / Oncology at UCSF and Sr. Vice President for Cancer Services with USCF Health. He previously served as the Chief Executive of the Institute of Cancer Research in London.
Dr. Stillman is the President and CEO of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) in New York. He previously served as the Director of the NCI-designated CSHL Cancer Center.
Prof. Ashworth and Dr. Stillman join 2019 Nobel Laureate William G. Kaelin Jr. , MD, of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, on the Circle Scientific Advisory Board.
Prof. Ashworth is a translational biologist whose research is focused on understanding tumor genetics to develop improvements in the treatment and care of cancer patients. He contributed to the identification of the BRCA2 breast cancer susceptibility gene and the development of PARP inhibitors for cancer treatment. Prof. Ashworth is an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences and the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) and a Fellow of the Royal Society. His work has been recognized with awards including the European Society of Medical Oncology Lifetime Achievement Award, the Drexel Prize in Cancer Biology, the Basser Global Prize, the Meyenburg Foundation Cancer Research Award, the David T. Workman Memorial Award of the Samuel Waxman Cancer Center and the Genetics Society Medal.
Dr. Stillman is a biochemist and cancer researcher who has made seminal discoveries related to the eukaryotic DNA replication cycle, including the discovery of the Origin Recognition Complex (ORC), a key protein that initiates the process of making chromosomes competent for duplication. His work has provided insights into the complexity of cell replication and has implications for understanding genomic instability and tumor heterogeneity in cancer. Dr. Stillman is an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Australian Academy of Science, a Fellow of the American Association for Cancer Research, and a Fellow of the Royal Society. He has received multiple awards including the Alfred P Sloan Prize from the General Motors Cancer Research Foundation, the Basic Science Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology, the Herbert Tabor Research Award, the Canada Gairdner International Award, the Heineken Prize for Biochemistry and Biophysics and the Order of Australia.
“We are delighted that Alan and Bruce are joining our growing SAB. Their expertise brings a deep understanding of complex cancer biology and the Circle team is very much looking forward to their guidance as we pursue our goals to develop new cancer therapeutics” said David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., Circle’s President and CEO.
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibition of Cyclin A has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers driven by mutations in the Rb pathway. Cyclin E upregulation is associated with resistance to drugs that target cdk4/6 activity and is also found across several cancer types.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contacts
Eleanor Lim: 650.825.4099
info@circlepharma.com
Source: Circle Pharma, Inc.
Read original article at Business Wire
July 20, 2020 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — (Business Wire) — Circle Pharma, Inc. has appointed Rajinder Singh, PhD as its Chief Science Officer. Dr. Singh will oversee Circle’s scientific work to develop macrocycle therapeutics against intractable cancer targets.
Dr. Singh has 25 years of experience in drug discovery and development, spanning small molecules, peptides and peptoids. He most recently served as Senior Vice President of Research and Pharmaceutics at ChemoCentryx and earlier in his career had senior roles at Rigel, Inc. and Chiron. He was awarded a doctorate in Organic chemistry from the University of Oxford where he studied under Prof. Sir Jack Baldwin, and subsequently undertook a postdoctoral research fellowship at Eli Lilly & Company.
“We are delighted to have Raj join the Circle team.” said David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., Circle’s President and CEO. “Raj brings deep experience in therapeutics research and development across chemistry, biology, pharmacology and pharmaceutics. He has built and led teams that have advanced multiple programs from discovery through pre-clinical optimization, and from Phase 1 to pivotal clinical studies. Raj is one of the inventors of Syk kinase inhibitor Tavalisse (fostamatinib) and most recently has supported the NDA submission for C5aR inhibitor avacopan. I am very much looking forward to working with Raj to bring Circle’s therapies to patients.”
“We would also like to express our deep appreciation to Dr. David Spellmeyer, who has served as Circle’s interim CSO since October 2017. With David’s scientific guidance and leadership, we have significantly advanced our macrocycle drug discovery platform and our cyclin programs. David will continue as an advisor to Circle, focusing on informatics and computational chemistry.”
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead programs target cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibition of Cyclin A has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers driven by mutations in the Rb pathway. Cyclin E upregulation is associated with resistance to drugs that target cdk4/6 activity and is also found across several cancer types.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contact: info@circlepharma.com
Read original article at Business Wire
May 27, 2020 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Circle Pharma, Inc., a macrocycle drug discovery and development company focused on intractable cancer targets, has appointed William G. Kaelin Jr. MD as Chair of its Scientific Advisory Board and Science Advisor to its Board of Directors.
Dr. Kaelin is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and a professor of medicine at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School. He was awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine along with Sir Peter Ratcliffe and Prof. Greg Semenza for discovering how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability. This work led to an understanding of the role of Hypoxia Inducible Factor (HIF) proteins in von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHL) and other cancers. Dr. Kaelin has been widely recognized for his contributions to cancer biology, and has received awards including the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, the Wiley Prize in Biomedical Sciences from Rockefeller University and the Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Dr. Kaelin’s research focuses on the function of tumor suppressor proteins, such as pRb, pVHL and p53, with a goal of uncovering new approaches to treating cancer. Discoveries in Dr. Kaelin’s laboratory on the interactions between proteins in the Rb pathway and cyclins underlie Circle’s work to develop macrocycles that modulate cyclin function as cancer therapeutics.
“We are very fortunate to have Dr. Kaelin as our lead science advisor. His deep expertise in cancer biology and world-renowned reputation for scientific excellence will be of great value to Circle as we pursue our goals to develop new cancer therapeutics,” said David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., Circle’s President and CEO.
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead program targets cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibiting cyclins A and E has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers that carry mutations causing dysregulation of the Rb pathway.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contacts
David Earp
info@circlepharma.com
March 17, 2020
South San Francisco, CA, March 17, 2020, — Circle Pharma, Inc., a macrocycle drug discovery and development company focused on intractable cancer targets, today announced that it has raised $45 million in a Series B financing.
The financing was led by The Column Group, with participation by Nextech Invest. All investors from the prior round – ShangPharma, LifeForce Capital, and the Berkeley Catalyst Fund – joined the financing.
In conjunction with the financing, Peter Svennilson, founder and managing partner of The Column Group, and Thilo Schroeder, Ph.D., partner at Nextech Invest were appointed to the board. John Josey, Ph.D., formerly President and CEO of Peloton Therapeutics, was appointed to the board as Chairman.
Proceeds from the investment will be used to advance Circle’s work to develop inhibitors of Cyclin A and Cyclin E, and to expand the company’s pipeline.
“We are delighted to have these premier life science investors supporting our Series B financing” said David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., Circle’s President and CEO. “With this strong backing, we will expand our team, drive our cyclin targeted programs towards the clinic, and apply our macrocycle platform to additional intractable targets.”
Circle’s new board appointments:
Peter Svennilson is the founder and managing partner of The Column Group. He was the chairman of Aragon Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Johnson & Johnson) and Seragon Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Roche / Genentech) and was a board director of Gritstone Oncology, NGM Biopharmaceuticals, Immune Design and Constellation Pharmaceuticals. He is currently a board director of ORIC Pharmaceuticals, Ribon Therapeutics and Carmot Therapeutics.
Thilo Schroeder, Ph.D., is a partner at Nextech Invest, a Zurich-based oncology-focused investment firm. He previously served on the board of Peloton Therapeutics (acquired by Merck) and Blueprint Medicines. He is currently a board director at IDEAYA Biosciences, Revolution Medicines, PMV Pharma, Silverback Therapeutics and a board observer at Black Diamond Therapeutics.
John Josey, Ph.D., served as the President, Chief Executive Officer, and member of the Board of Directors at Peloton Therapeutics from 2013 until its acquisition by Merck in 2019. From 2011 to 2013, he was President and Chief Scientific Officer at Peloton, and from 1998 to 2011, Vice President of Discovery Chemistry at Array Pharma.
The continuing members of Circle’s board of directors are Walter H. Moos, Ph.D., CEO of ShangPharma Innovation and Managing Director of Pandect Bioventures, Matthew P. Jacobson, Ph.D., Circle Pharma co-founder, chair of the department of pharmaceutical chemistry at U.C. San Francisco and also co-founder of Global Blood Therapeutics, Relay Therapeutics and Cedilla Therapeutics, and David J. Earp, J.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Circle Pharma.
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead program targets cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibiting cyclins A and E has been shown to be synthetically lethal in cancers that carry mutations causing dysregulation of the Rb pathway.
More information: www.circlepharma.com
Contact: info@circlepharma.com
Read original article at Business Wire
Read original article at Business Wire
October 8, 2019
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Circle Pharma, Inc. is delighted to congratulate Dr. Kaelin, on having been jointly awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with co-recipients Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe of Oxford University and Dr. Gregg L. Semenza of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The prize was awarded for their work on discovering how cells detect and respond to changes in oxygen availability, a process that is key to the survival of many cancers.
Dr. Kaelin is a professor in the Department of Medicine at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard Medical School and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. Dr. Kaelin is also an advisor to Circle Pharma.
In separate work, Dr. Kaelin and his colleagues at Dana Farber Cancer Institute identified cyclins A and E as potential targets for disrupting the growth of certain cancers. Their studies with peptide tool compounds showed that inhibiting these targets can selectively kill cancers that are dysregulated in the Rb pathway, in a process known as synthetic lethality. With guidance from Dr. Kaelin, Circle is developing macrocycles that inhibit cyclins A and E as potential new cancer therapies.
“We are thrilled that the pioneering work of Drs. Kaelin, Ratcliffe and Semenza has been recognized with the award of the Nobel Prize and congratulate them on this well-deserved recognition,” said Dr. David J. Earp, Circle’s CEO.
About Circle Pharma, Inc.
Circle is developing a new paradigm for macrocycle drug discovery based on rational design and synthetic chemistry. Circle’s technology facilitates the design and synthesis of intrinsically cell-permeable macrocycles that can address both intra- and extra-cellular therapeutic targets, and can be delivered by oral administration. Circle’s macrocycle development platform is applicable across a wide range of serious diseases; the company is initially focusing its internal development efforts on intracellular protein-protein interactions that are key drivers in cancer. Its lead program targets cyclins A and E, which are part of the regulatory machinery that controls the progression of cells through the cell growth and division cycle. Inhibiting cyclins A and E has been shown to be synthetic lethal in cancers that carry mutations causing dysregulation of the Rb pathway.
Contacts
David J. Earp, JD, PhD., 650.392.0350
info@circlepharma.com
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