NEW YORK – UK-based proteomics firm Kinomica said Friday it has closed on £3.9 million ($5.1 million) in private funding.
The company said that it plans to use the funds for facilities and equipment needed to scale up operation of its KScan phosphoproteomic platform. UK investment firm BGF and Longwell Venture Partners each invested £1.5 million. The additional £900,000 was secured from seed investors including BioCity, Alderley Park Ventures, and Puffin Point.
The company uses mass spectrometry to analyze protein phosphorylation patterns to better understand kinase signaling involved in various biological and disease processes, most notably cancer. It was launched in 2016 to commercialize technology developed by Queen Mary University of London's Barts Cancer Institute researcher Pedro Cutillas and began operations in the summer of 2019.
The company's lead product is a test for identifying acute myeloid leukemia patients likely to respond to the drug midostaurin.
"This marks a huge step forward for Kinomica and for KScan, as we look to the future of cancer treatment," Kinomica CEO Jane Theaker said in a statement. "Our pioneering technology offers much-needed support for the development of new precision medicines and represents a new approach to drug trials and treatments that will have a huge impact on patients' lives."