Limula’s Post

Latvian LongeVC has invested in the US startup CatenaBio. The total amount of the extended seed round was $2.35M. Existing #investors California Innovation Fund, the US Civilization Ventures and Pioneer Fund, and new investors Freeflow from the US, Californian Caffeinated Capital, and the BrightEdge - American Cancer Society participated in the round. Founded in 2020 by Marco Lobba, Ph.D., Geo Guillen, and Matthew Francis and spun out of the laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, CatenaBio has developed a platform, that allows the creation of novel biomolecules and further synthesizes them in any structure, combination, or orientation. Using naturally occurring amino acids, the startup’s technology allows coupling proteins to create novel therapeutics in autoimmune diseases, #oncology, and vaccine development. Autoimmune diseases cause the body to attack healthy cells, but Catena’s protein conjugation technique allows scientists to attach safe signals to healthy cells, tricking the immune system into no longer attacking them. The startup plans to raise its next Series A later this year. LongeVC is a venture company with offices in #Riga and #Lugano (#Switzerland). It was established in 2016 by Garri Zmudze, Sergey Jakimov, and Ilya Suharenko. A €35M fund backs startups at the early and seed stages across the US and Europe. All about Baltic startups and VC https://www.balticvc.com/ #Latvia #startup #startups #tech #technology #technologies #TechnologyNews #TechNews #Deal #Deals #VentureCapital #VC #biotech #Biotechnology #Science #medtech

Join B2DG's upcoming event on 04/23/24 to learn how investors evaluate successful startup companies. Gain insights into key business issues faced by new ventures, from concept to market. Learn the skills and tools required to start a new venture and how to drive the commercialization of your product. The event will use Melanoma Diagnostic as an example of patented technology, product validation, and a successful exit. Don't miss out on this opportunity to understand the vocabulary of investors and the management team. Register now at https://lnkd.in/g92Ryfwd #startups #investors #newventures #entrepreneurship #commercialization

Cancer-fighting tech: Emerging startups to watch in Europe.New cancer tech players bringing AI-powered tools to market.#medtech #biotech #Cancer #investor #VCs #venturecapital #entrepreneur #AI #tech #investment #startup #entrepreneurship https://ow.ly/yLnL50PV4NG

Technology is a beautiful thing.

This infographic is your gateway to dispelling myths, embracing innovative startups, and venturing into the promising future of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). Read here: https://hubs.li/Q02dJ3Gy0 #HRTInsights #HealthcareInnovations #CellBasedTherapy #OvarianTissueTherapy

📢 Founder Stories University Edition is a collection of fireside chats with leading academic founders backed by the AlbionVC team. Having invested in over 30 university spinouts from the leading UK universities, the series highlights personal stories of those who made the leap from academia to entrepreneurship.  In this episode of our founder stories, Professor Amit Nathwani, CEO NovalGen and a leading global mind in gene therapy research, walks Simon Goldman, Partner AlbionVC, through his academic and business career and what still drives him today. Amit reflects on his journey from academia to entrepreneurship, how his early years as a clinician have influenced his licensing deals with big pharmaceutical companies and later his two spinout companies. “The UCL Technology Fund for me has enabled two of my spinout companies. It’s been extremely important for us and UCL as an environment. I think for me it has been crucial because I could not have done what we've been able to do otherwise.” said Prof. Amit Nathwani, CEO, NovalGen     Watch the full story here: https://lnkd.in/eh2zsEFY UCL Business Ltd #biotech #lifesciences #immunotherapy #cancerresearch #BiotechInnovation #medicalbreakthroughs #tech #uktech #founders #startups #entrepreneurs #venturecapital #founderstories

A minute read - Designer from genes to jeans! #MinuteArticle #WomenInTechnology #innnovation #technology #creativity #futurism #startups #socialmedia #socialnetworking #motivation #sustainability #inspiration #creativewriting #contentwriting #business #digitalmarketing #management

My problem is I keep burrowing down rabbit holes. I find a story about a startup that arouses my innate curiosity about tech I know nothing about – in this case biosciences – and all of a sudden I’m deluged with news about biotech startups that I can’t resist researching. Which is why today you are getting not just one, but two posts about UK biotech startups: Stevenage-based Laverock Therapeutics (earlier post) and Cheshire-based Pencil Biosciences Limited (this post). This not random – they are both chasing the same dream in that they are both developing gene editing technology to treat disease. Unlike Laverock, Pencil Biosciences’ website tells you nothing about who they are, what they do or how they do it, though the phrase ‘gene modulation’ may mean something to cognoscenti. What I can tell you is that Pencil Biosciences was founded in 2018 by Rajik Ibrahim, Pencil’s CSO, a role he also fulfilled at his previous biotech startup, Viramatix. Also listed in the media as co-founders are serial biotech entrepreneurs Dr Timothy Schulz-Utermoehl and maybe Martin Quibell (I say maybe as Pencil is not listed in his LinkedIn profile), who also cofounded (and remain Scientific Advisors) at Pandeia Therapeutics, which was apparently acquired late last year ‘by a mid-cap pharmaceutical company’. Leading Pencil Biosciences is Amanda Smith, who was appointed CEO in April 2022, and whose background is mainly in IP and licensing roles in the biotech industry. Pencil first raised funding in late 2019 with a £500k investment from UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), Catapult Ventures GM&C Life Sciences Fund and prolific biosciences investor, Jonathan Milner. UKI2S and Milner recently followed on in a £5.6m seed round, along with Northern Gritstone, Octopus Ventures and Martlet Capital among others. Due to the paucity of information available, I suspect Pencil Biosciences is at an earlier stage of development than Laverock Therapeutics. I’m only wondering whether they should at least compare notes given they are both in pursuit of the same goal. #biotech #biosciences #genetherapy #geneediting

The year 2023 marks a pivotal moment in the realm of #startupfunding, characterized by transformative #investmenttrends and evolving strategies. Here's an in-depth look at five critical trends reshaping this dynamic #investment landscape: 1. Adaptation in Capital Funding Amid Economic Shifts: In the shifting sands of 2023's economic landscape, Asimov, a Boston-based synthetic biology startup, emerged as a beacon of resilience and innovation. Amidst the tumult of #biotechfunding, Asimov's story began in 2017, founded by a team of visionaries determined to revolutionize cell and gene therapies. In a bold move, they secured a combined $200 million in Series A and Series B funding, a testament to their groundbreaking work in harnessing synthetic biology to manufacture core components of advanced therapies. This substantial #funding round, a significant feat in an #economy still recovering from the effects of peak #inflation, highlights Asimov's crucial role in bringing advanced therapies into the mainstream. Their journey, marked by strategic foresight and technological ingenuity, To read the full article, go to: https://lnkd.in/eD9G9wex