Tiburon Therapeutics

Tiburon Therapeutics was a San Diego-based biotechnology company focused on identifying and developing high-impact oncology therapeutics. The company was founded by Dr. David Cheresh, a renowned researcher at UCSD, and was built around a portfolio of licensed assets targeting critical pathways in cancer cell proliferation and the tumor microenvironment. Tiburon's most notable asset was onvansertib (PCM-075), a highly selective, orally bioavailable inhibitor of Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1), which was licensed from Nerviano Medical Sciences. In 2017, Tiburon Therapeutics was acquired by Trovagene (now Cardiff Oncology) in a strategic move to transition Trovagene into a therapeutics-focused company. Beyond the PLK1 program, Tiburon was also instrumental in the early development of STING pathway modulators, which were later integrated into Mavupharma's pipeline. The company's legacy continues through the clinical advancement of onvansertib in various hematologic and solid tumor indications.