protein-degradation
(6)
SEED Therapeutics
SEED Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering rationally designed molecular glue degraders to treat diseases driven by proteins long considered undruggable. Powered by its proprietary RITE3 discovery platform - which pairs disease-causing target proteins with the most suitable of more than 600 human E3 ligases - SEED reprograms the cell's own ubiquitin-proteasome system to destroy harmful proteins rather than merely block them. Founded in 2020 by CEO Lan Huang and a group of protein-degradation pioneers including Nobel laureate Avram Hershko, the company advanced its lead oral RBM39 degrader ST-01156 into first-in-human Phase 1 trials in early 2026, with a broader pipeline spanning oncology, neurodegeneration, immunology and virology backed by partners Eli Lilly and Eisai.
Stablix, Inc.
Stablix, Inc. is a preclinical biopharmaceutical company pioneering targeted protein stabilization (TPS), a new therapeutic modality that does the opposite of protein degraders. Its RESTORE platform generates heterobifunctional small molecules called RESTORACs that recruit deubiquitinase enzymes (DUBs) to selectively remove ubiquitin from disease-relevant proteins, restoring deficient proteins to therapeutic levels or correcting aberrant protein function. Co-located in New York City and Boston and founded on science from Columbia University, Stablix has raised roughly $78M and is developing programs in cancer, rare diseases and immunological disorders, including a strategic collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals.
Avilar Therapeutics
Avilar Therapeutics is a Waltham, Massachusetts biopharmaceutical company pioneering the degradation of extracellular and membrane-bound proteins. Its ATAC (ASGPR Targeting Chimera) platform uses bifunctional small molecules that grab a disease-causing protein floating in circulation and shuttle it into the liver's endolysosome to be destroyed, extending the reach of targeted protein degradation beyond the inside of the cell. Launched in 2021 with backing from RA Capital, Avilar is applying the platform to autoimmune disease, preeclampsia, and other conditions driven by proteins that conventional drugs struggle to address.
EpiBiologics
EpiBiologics is a San Mateo biotech building bispecific antibodies that grab disease-driving proteins on the outside of cells and drag them into the trash. Its EpiTAC platform - spun out of Jim Wells' lab at UCSF - taps a library of more than 270 internalizing receptors so degradation happens in the right tissue and nowhere else. With $280M raised across Seed, Series A and a 2026 Series B led by GV and Johnson & Johnson, the company has pushed its lead EGFR degrader, EPI-326, into a Phase 1 trial for lung and head-and-neck cancers.
Lycia Therapeutics
Lycia Therapeutics is a South San Francisco biotech building lysosomal targeting chimeras (LYTACs) - bifunctional molecules that drag disease-driving extracellular and membrane proteins into the cell's lysosomes for destruction. Founded in 2019 out of the lab of Nobel laureate Carolyn Bertozzi, Lycia is advancing a pipeline of autoimmune and inflammatory disease therapies, backed by $226M+ in venture capital and a strategic discovery collaboration with Eli Lilly.
GlycoEra AG
GlycoEra AG is a Swiss-American clinical-stage biotech building a new class of precision medicines that selectively degrade the circulating proteins driving autoimmune disease. Spun out of LimmaTech Biologics in 2021 and powered by a proprietary glycoengineering platform, the company designs bifunctional biologics (G-LyTACs) that pull pathogenic autoantibodies out of the bloodstream with speed and depth - without the broad immune suppression of existing therapies. Its lead program, GE8820, targets pathogenic IgG4 autoantibodies. Backed by $179M across Series A and an oversubscribed $130M Series B, GlycoEra operates from Wädenswil, Switzerland and Newton, Massachusetts.