NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Advanced Cell Diagnostics today said that it completed its $12 million Series B equity financing round to support the commercial expansion of its RNA biomarker technology.
New Leaf Venture Partners and existing investor Morningside Ventures participated in the round.
The funding will go toward further commercialization of Advanced Cell's RNAscope-based products and services into the life science research market, as well as toward acceleration of RNAscope into the clinical diagnostics space.
The technology is an automated multiplex in situ hybridization platform that can detect and quantify RNA biomarkers at single-molecule sensitivity, Advanced Cell said, adding RNAscope assays can be developed within two weeks for almost any gene in the human genome "regardless of its coding potential." Current customers of the technology include academic institutions and major pharmaceutical and biotech companies.
Michael Dybbs, principle at New Leaf, said in a statement that he expects RNAscope "to open up a large untapped market and become a mainstay in basic and translational research, while at the same time accelerating the development of advanced diagnostics."
Advanced Cell is based in Hayward, Calif., and develops cell- and tissue-based diagnostic tests. In 2009 it raised $5.4 million in its Series A round.