TORL Looks To Break Ground In Growing Field Of Claudin-Targeting Drugs

The company announced a series B-2 financing of $158m that it plans to use for pivotal Phase II development of TORL-1-23, which it called a first-in-class agent.

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TORL BioTherapeutics LLC is aiming for its latest fundraise to take it past the regulatory finish line with TORL-1-23, which it calls a first-in-class antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) targeting Claudin 6 (CLDN6) in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. TORL-1-23 is part of a suite of ADCs it is developing for solid tumors, including one against Claudin 18.2 (CLDN18.2), the target of a recently approved Astellas Pharma, Inc. drug and a growing number of therapeutic candidates that include cell therapies.

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