Tl;dr: We are Kopra Bio, a serial biotech entrepreneur and a UCSF Neurosurgery resident on a mission to revolutionize cancer treatment. Kopra Bio is curing cancer using viral immunotherapy technology we developed at UCSF. We’re making the next Keytruda, a $25B/yr cancer drug blockbuster, starting with the most aggressive form of brain cancer, glioblastoma. In preclinical models, we improve survival rates from 0% with standard-of-care treatment to greater than 90% survival with our treatment.

—

Hey - we are Andrew and Alex!

Team:

🤵 Andrew Bartynski, PhD - Serial Biotech Entrepreneur and repeat YC founder. Developed the contraceptive pill for men as COO @ YourChoice Therapeutics (YC W19). Founded a COVID-19 antiviral company that went from founding to Phase II/III clinical trial in < 6 months and was acquired in < 1 year as COO @ ANA Therapeutics. Made next-generation psychedelics for mental health @ Alexander Shulgin Research Institute. Now curing cancer as CEO @ Kopra Bio.

👨‍⚕️Alexander Haddad, MD - Scientific Cofounder @ Kopra Bio, Neurosurgery Resident @ UCSF. Alex published > 70 peer-reviewed publications as a neurosurgery resident at UCSF. He is particularly interested in neuro-oncology and the delivery of cell and gene therapies to the central nervous system. Alex helped spearhead the development of Kopra Bio’s viral technology in the labs of Dr. Manish Aghi and Dr. Noriyuki Kasahara. His clinical skills have also been recognized with the Krevans Award for clinical excellence at San Francisco General Hospital.

👨‍⚕️ Manish Aghi, MD, PhD - Neurosurgeon and Professor @ UCSF. Renowned expert with over 30 years of experience in Neurosurgery and tumor microenvironment leading the Brain Tumor Research Center at UCSF with a focus on malignant brain tumors like glioblastoma.

👨‍⚕️ Noriyuki Kasahara, MD, PhD - CSO @ 4D Molecular Therapeutics, Professor of Neurological Surgery and Radiation Oncology @ UCSF. Dr. Kasahara has been a world leader in the field of cancer research and gene therapy vector development for over 30 years.

👩‍🔬 Sara Collins, PhD - Gene Therapy Specialist @ UCSF, Director @ 4D Molecular Therapeutics. World expert in the development of vectors for cancer gene therapy.

How do we get to a world without cancer?

❌ Today’s approach - death by a thousand cuts

State-of-the-art cancer therapies target tumor mutations one by one. Despite more than 550 cancer drug approvals since the year 2000, there are still 10 million cancer deaths each year. This approach is expensive ($1B per therapy), slow (10 years of development per drug), and incremental (only one mutation addressed per therapy). Even the most successful cancer drugs of all time have success rates of less than 10% in solid tumors.

✅ Kopra Bio’s Solution - first principles approach that targets phenotypes seen across all cancers

Using stealthy viruses🦠, Kopra Bio infects cancer cells, spreads throughout tumors, and hijacks them to produce immune signals. The immune signals recruit T cells which then kill the cancer. This process teaches the patient’s immune system to kill their tumor - in vivo - curing the cancer and eliminating metastasis and recurrence.

🔬Kopra Bio at a glance

• Demonstrated efficacy in the most challenging brain cancer models increasing survival from 0% without treatment to greater than 90% survival with our treatment
• Cancer selective by design - reduced toxicity and adverse events
• Platform approach broadly applicable across cancer
• Strong safety profile
• Highly stable and scalable to manufacture

🙏 Asks

• Share this post on your socials and help spread the word!
• If you’re as excited as we are about eradicating cancer and would like to learn more about what we’re doing, email us at founders@kopra.bio