immune-checkpoint
(5)
Teon Therapeutics, Inc.
Teon Therapeutics is a clinical-stage, privately held biopharmaceutical company in Redwood City, California, developing a focused portfolio of orally administered small-molecule drugs that block immunosuppressive, cancer-promoting signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment. Its GPCR-directed candidates - TT-702, a first-in-class adenosine A2B receptor antagonist, and TT-816, a first-in-class cannabinoid CB2 receptor antagonist - aim to restore anti-tumor immunity for the roughly 88% of solid-tumor patients who do not benefit from existing immunotherapies. The founding team members were primary inventors of Lexiscan, the only FDA-approved selective adenosine therapeutic.
Apeximmune Therapeutics
Apeximmune Therapeutics is a South San Francisco / Burlingame-area biotechnology company developing next-generation antibody therapeutics that harness the immune system to treat cancer and autoimmune disease. Using a proprietary target-discovery platform built on bioinformatic analysis of thousands of tumor RNA-seq transcriptomes, the company has identified more than 30 novel immune targets. Its lead program, AI-306, is a first-in-class antagonist antibody against the novel immune checkpoint AIM-103, and its MEBA platform builds bispecific antibodies that engage macrophages to kill tumor cells. The company closed a $21.3 million Series A in 2025 led by PharmaEssentia.
AltruBio Inc.
AltruBio is a clinical-stage San Francisco biotech developing first-in-class immune checkpoint enhancer antibodies for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Its lead program, ALTB-268, targets PSGL-1 to restore T-cell homeostasis, and is advancing through mid-stage trials in ulcerative colitis. The company rebranded from AbGenomics in 2020 under CEO Judy Chou and closed an oversubscribed $225M Series B in 2024.
OncoC4, Inc.
OncoC4, Inc. is a Rockville, Maryland clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company building first-in-class and best-in-class antibody therapies for hard-to-treat cancers and Alzheimer's disease. Founded by immunologists Yang Liu and Pan Zheng, the company discovered the innate immune checkpoint CD24-Siglec-10 and is advancing a pipeline led by gotistobart (ONC-392), a next-generation anti-CTLA-4 antibody partnered with BioNTech, alongside SIGLEC10, PD-1/VEGF, and CD24-targeting programs.
Judy Chou
Dr. Judy Chou is the President, CEO, and Board Member of AltruBio Inc., a clinical-stage biotech company in San Francisco pioneering a first-in-class immune checkpoint enhancer platform targeting PSGL-1/CD162 to treat autoimmune diseases. With over 25 years of experience spanning Bayer Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Genentech, and Wyeth, she led AltruBio through a landmark $225M Series B financing in 2024 and is advancing lead candidate ALTB-268 through Phase 2 trials for ulcerative colitis. Recognized as one of Endpoints News' Top 20 Women in Biopharma (2025) and a Most Influential Women in Business honoree (San Francisco Business Times, 2018), she holds a Ph.D. from Yale University and conducted post-doctoral training at the Max-Planck Institute in Germany.