ICOS spin-off gets first round and exec team

Calistoga Pharmaceuticals has garnered $21 million in its first round of venture capital and a line-up of executives to run the start-up biotech company. Frazier Healthcare Ventures led the round for the ICOS spin-off and Michael Gallatin, Ph.D, was named president. Alta Partners, Three Arch Partners, and Amgen Ventures also participated in this financing round. Eli Lilly, which bought ICOS last January [1], also participated in the financing.

Calistoga will focus on developing therapies for oncology and inflammation. Researchers will focus on p110 delta, which is an isoform of PI3 kinase, a class of signaling targets in cancer and inflammatory cells.

"With the acquisition of this program from ICOS, and the significant fundraising accomplished, Calistoga is positioned to be a leader in this field," commented James Topper, MD, PhD, a general partner at Frazier Healthcare Ventures.

- check out the release [2] on the round
- and here's the article [3] from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

ALSO: MPM Capital has gained $550 million for its new bioventure fund. Release [4]

Related Article:
Lilly to Icos: Merry Christmas, you're fired. Report [5]