Skip to main content
Premium Trial:

Request an Annual Quote

Sherlock Biosciences Raises $80M in Series B Financing

NEW YORK ─ Sherlock Biosciences said on Tuesday that it has raised $80 million in a Series B financing.

Novalis LifeSciences led the round, which included new investors Illumina Ventures, Albany Capital, and Catalio Capital Management, among others, and existing investors Northpond Ventures, Good Ventures, and others. The financing increases Sherlock's total funding raised to date to $111 million. 

Sherlock said the new funding will support partnerships and the development of products enabled by its decentralized diagnostic platform for DNA and RNA detection.

Leveraging CRISPR and synthetic biology, the platform can operate at ambient temperature without complex instrumentation, opening a range of applications in low-resource settings including the home, the firm said.

Sherlock's technology combines the accuracy of PCR with the convenience and simplicity of antigen tests for molecular diagnostic testing at the point of need, according to the company, and has a range of potential applications including infectious diseases, early detection of cancer, treatment monitoring, and precision medicine.

In May 2020, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm received Emergency Use Authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration for its Sherlock CRISPR SARS-CoV-2 kit.

The Scan

RNA Editing in Octopuses Seems to Help Acclimation to Shifts in Water Temperature

A paper in Cell reports that octopuses use RNA editing to help them adjust to different water temperatures.

Topical Compound to Block EGFR Inhibitors May Ease Skin Toxicities, Study Finds

A topical treatment described in Science Translational Medicine may limit skin toxicities seen with EGFR inhibitor therapy.

Dozen Genetic Loci Linked to Preeclampsia Risk in New GWAS

An analysis of genome-wide association study data in JAMA Cardiology finds genetic loci linked to preeclampsia that have ties to blood pressure.

Cancer Survival Linked to Mutational Burden in Pan-Cancer Analysis

A pan-cancer paper appearing in JCO Precision Oncology suggests tumor mutation patterns provide clues for predicting cancer survival that are independent of other prognostic factors.