US-based Kinnate Biopharma Inc., (NASDAQ: KNTE), a company dedicated to the development of small-molecule cancer drugs, has announced significant corporate restructuring due to financial stress. This includes a reduction of 70% of its workforce, leaving the company with only 28 employees.
Pipeline Program Adjustments
As part of the restructuring, three pipeline programs are being re-evaluated. The preclinical MEK inhibitor KIN-7136 will not proceed to clinical trials, and the development of the pan-RAF inhibitor exarafenib (KIN-2787) as a monotherapy will be halted after reaching Phase I. The company will explore “strategic alternatives” for these programs. The FGFR inhibitor KIN-3248, which is in an ongoing dose-escalation study, will also be reassessed.
Strategic Review and Financial Considerations
The decisions were made following a strategic review that took into account the company’s cash runway and the commercial potential of its pipeline programs. As of June 30, 2023, Kinnate reported having approximately USD 204.3 million in cash or cash equivalents, which is expected to fund operations into at least Q2 2026. The combination of exarafenib with binimetinib will continue to be explored due to positive data in NRAS mutant melanoma and BRAF-altered solid tumors. Additionally, the development of the c-MET inhibitor KIN-8741 will proceed, with an Investigational New Drug application to be filed. Kinnate also plans to nominate a drug candidate for the brain-penetrant CDK4 selective program in Q4 2023.
Impact on China Operations
The restructuring will also affect China, where Kinnate will “separate from all employees of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Kinnjiu Biopharma.” Established in 2021 with a Series A financing led by OrbiMed Asia Partners that raised USD 35 million, Kinnjiu was a joint venture with China-based Precision Medicine Asia, which licensed rights to three of Kinnate’s pipeline programs, including the now discontinued exarafenib, KIN-3248, and another unnamed candidate.-Fineline Info & Tech
