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Degron Therapeutics closes USD 40 million Series A extension for molecular glue degraders

A targeted protein degradation company with a clinical-stage molecular glue degrader program has secured additional capital to fund its lead oncology asset...

Degron Therapeutics, a targeted protein degradation company that operates out of Shanghai, China, has secured additional capital to fund its lead oncology asset and expand its preclinical immunology pipeline. The Series A extension closed at USD 40 million, bringing total capital raised to USD 95 million.

The round was led by Lapam Capital, with participation from GTJA Investment Group, Fortune Capital, CSPC & Growth, ApicHope, GF Xinde, CASSTAR, Kinghall Ventures, and GAGE Capital. Proceeds are earmarked for continued clinical development of the company's lead asset, advancement of two immunology programs to development candidate stage, and ongoing expansion of the proprietary GlueXplorer platform.

Degron's lead program, DEG6498, is a first-in-class oral small-molecule molecular glue degrader targeting HuR (Human antigen R), an RNA-binding protein with roles in cancer, inflammation, and metabolic disease. The compound entered the clinic in late 2025, with the first patient dosed in November, and is currently in dose escalation in a Phase I study in patients with advanced solid tumors. HuR has historically been considered undruggable by conventional small-molecule approaches, and DEG6498 works by inducing an interaction between the E3 ubiquitin ligase component cereblon and HuR, directing the protein for targeted degradation. Degron states it has secured IND clearances in both the US and China for its lead program.

Beyond DEG6498, the company's pipeline spans oncology, inflammation, metabolic disorders, and rare diseases. Two immunology programs are being advanced toward investigational new drug filings, with development candidate selection targeted for 2026.

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Degron was founded in 2021 by Yong Cang, a professor at ShanghaiTech University, around the GlueXplorer platform — a de novo molecular glue discovery engine. The platform has generated more than 10,000 structurally differentiated compounds across more than 150 novel non-IMiD cores, supported by complementary screening and validation approaches. The company said the platform is designed to identify glue degraders against targets that have resisted conventional drug discovery, including transcription factors and RNA-binding proteins. Degron has also established a collaboration with Takeda to apply molecular glue degrader approaches across additional therapeutic areas, though terms of that arrangement were not disclosed in the current announcement.


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