Onconaut Therapeutics Advances Precision Oncology from the University of Colorado Anschutz
For Dan LaBarbera, Ph.D., founder and CEO of Onconaut Therapeutics, Colorado provides the momentum and support needed to accelerate first- and best-in-class cancer therapies rooted in decades of scientific discovery.
As Professor and Director of the CU Anschutz Center for Drug Discovery at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, LaBarbera leads a team working to develop novel cancer therapies that target CHD1L, an oncogene that drives tumor growth, metastasis, and treatment resistance across multiple cancers.
Onconaut emerged from groundbreaking discoveries in LaBarbera’s academic lab and was launched with CU Anschutz Innovations, which helps CU researchers translate biomedical breakthroughs into high-potential companies. The company is based at Fitzsimons Innovation Community, adjacent to the University of Colorado Anschutz, an academic medical campus located in Aurora, where proximity to clinical teams and research partners accelerates development.
As LaBarbera explains, “Having all the facilities that we have, we can see this development from start to finish. We get to work closely with medical teams and see our work in action.”
Colorado’s broad support for health innovators strengthens that trajectory. Early support from CU Anschutz Innovations to spin out the technology from LaBarbera’s lab was vital, and the Innosphere Life Sciences Accelerator Program helped prepare the company to pitch investors and prepare for commercialization.
It’s all paying off. Onconaut recently secured two major awards that expand its preclinical program and speed IND-enabling work. The company earned a $246,868 Advanced Industries Grant from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade to support continued R&D and commercialization planning. Additionally, Onconaut received a $2.5 million Fast-Track STTR grant from the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute to advance a clinical candidate precision oncology drug targeting CHD1L.
The early data fueling this momentum is striking. In advanced organoid and animal models, CHD1L-targeting drug candidates enhance the effectiveness of existing chemotherapies and targeted therapies. “We are seeing an unprecedented amount of synergy between our drug and current treatments,” LaBarbera says.
Onconaut is advancing oncology therapies to give patients with aggressive cancers more effective treatment options, and renewed hope. The company advances its cancer therapeutics in a city built for scientific growth. By harnessing Aurora’s diverse talent base, robust industry assets, rich cultural roots, and exceptional leadership, Aurora creates the conditions for strategic primary job growth and supports companies that bring meaningful innovation to market.
