NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – UK molecular diagnostics shop Biofortuna confirmed that it has raised £1.1 million ($1.6 million) in a Series A round to launch the company's first diagnostic genotyping product.
In addition to supporting the product pipeline, the funds raised will be used to hire additional sales and marketing staff, Mike Bunce, CEO and chief scientific officer of Liverpool-based Biofortuna, told GenomeWeb Daily News in an e-mail.
The first products, which will be officially launched next month, are novel, easy-to-use in vitro PCR kits for HLA genotyping and human disease diagnosis. Because the PCR kits do not require temperature-controlled storage or shipping, they are environmentally friendly, Bunce said.
"The products are designed to save healthcare scientists time by simplifying and streamlining complex genotyping such as HLA typing," he said. "We have an extended product portfolio under development that addresses other needs of the healthcare market, particularly in transplantation."
The funding round was led by EV, a UK venture and growth capital fund management company, as well as UK venture capital firm Catapult Venture. The firm's board members also participated.