Proteolix - Top 20 VC deals of 2008

Company: Proteolix
Based: South San Francisco, CA
Amount: $79M

Investors: Khosla Ventures, Duff Ackerman & Goodrich, TPG Growth, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Undisclosed Venture Firm

Scoop: In September, South San Francisco-based Proteolix raised a whopping $79 million in a single round of funding. The company is developing therapies that target certain cancers and immunological conditions by inhibiting the proteasome, thereby disrupting protein turnover in cells. Money from the round is being used to finance Phase II clinical trials of it's lead product carfilzomib and advance the anti-cancer therapeutic into Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Proteolix is also advancing other earlier stage proteasome inhibitor drug candidates.