October 19 2022
Nucleome Therapeutics raises oversubscribed £37.5 million Series A financing to decode the dark matter of the human genome and deliver first-in-class precision medicines
• Financing led by M Ventures alongside other new investors JJDC, Pfizer Ventures and British Patient Capital, and including founding investor Oxford Science Enterprises
• Nucleome’s pioneering platform seeks to identify direct genetic linkages to disease-associated genes for drug discovery
• Funds will advance Nucleome’s autoimmune disease programmes and fuel expansion of its dark genome atlas
Oxford, UK, 19 October 2022 – Nucleome Therapeutics Limited, (‘Nucleome’ or ‘the Company’), a biotechnology company decoding the dark matter of the human genome to discover first-in-class precision medicines, today announces it has closed an oversubscribed £37.5 million Series A financing round. The funds will be used to advance the Company’s autoimmune disease programmes, fuel expansion of its dark genome atlas and further develop its pioneering platform.
The financing was led by new investor M Ventures, the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck KGaA, with participation from Johnson and Johnson Innovation-JJDC, Inc. (“JJDC”), the strategic venture capital arm of Johnson & Johnson; Pfizer Ventures, the venture group of Pfizer; British Patient Capital, through its Future Fund: Breakthrough programme; and founding investor Oxford Science Enterprises.
Nucleome has the unique ability to discover and validate first-in-class targets through genetics, by investigating the ‘dark’ region of the human genome, which does not encode for proteins but contains 90% of disease-associated genetic changes. Understanding the role of these genetic variants has been a long-standing challenge, hindering the translation of the human genome into useful drug discovery insights.
Nucleome’s breakthrough platform combines pioneering 3D genome technology and machine learning to shed light on these variants by directly linking genes to diseases and mapping pathways with unprecedented precision for drug discovery.
“We have already made significant progress by mapping genes to genetics in a number of human immune cell types and discovering the first wave of potential first-in-class autoimmune disease targets,” said Dr Danuta Jeziorska, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of Nucleome Therapeutics. “The completion of this oversubscribed round with such a high-calibre group of global life science investors is a recognition of the significance of Nucleome’s platform and its potential to support the development of an exciting portfolio of first-in-class targets for autoimmune diseases.”
Dr Bauke Anninga, Principal at M Ventures, commented: “Nucleome’s differentiated platform technology has the potential to fundamentally shift the way we discover and develop precision medicines. Unlocking the value of the largely unexplored territory of the genome can lead to the identification of high-value drug targets. Nucleome’s platform adds 3D genomic information to a wealth of available genomic data, uncovering a new dimension of information that is disease as well as cell type-specific. We are excited to lead this financing, and alongside our co-investors, partner with Nucleome’s exceptional team to advance their target and drug discovery programmes to bring transformative treatments to patients.”
Dr Jonathan Hepple, Non-executive Director at Nucleome and Advisor to Oxford Science Enterprises, added: “Since its founding in 2019, Nucleome has advanced to become a leader in 3D genomics analysis. Publications in high-impact journals have validated its groundbreaking technology and ability to identify new drug targets where other technologies fall short. With a highly experienced team, this fundraising, backed by an impressive syndicate of world-class investors, will allow Nucleome to explore the dark genome and develop its exciting pipeline of potential drug targets. Oxford Science Enterprises is proud to have supported the Company since its inception and continues to do so, and we look forward to working with the team through this exciting time of growth.”
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For more information, please contact:
Nucleome Therapeutics
Dr Danuta Jeziorska, Chief Executive Officer & Founder
Consilium Strategic Communications
Mary-Jane Elliott/Sukaina Virji/Stella Lempidaki
About Nucleome Therapeutics
Nucleome Therapeutics is decoding the dark matter of the human genome to uncover novel ways to treat disease. The dark genome holds more than 90% of disease-linked genetic variants whose value remains untapped, representing a significant opportunity for drug discovery and development. The Company has the unique ability to link these variants to gene function and precisely map disease pathways. Nucleome’s cell type-specific platform creates high resolution 3D genome structure maps and enables variant functional validation at scale in primary cell types, enabling the discovery and development of novel, better and safer drugs. The initial focus of the company is on lymphocytes and related autoimmune disease. Nucleome’s ambition is to build a robust pipeline of drug assets, with corresponding biomarkers. Nucleome Therapeutics was founded by leading experts in gene regulation from the University of Oxford. For more information, please visit www.nucleome.com.
About M Ventures
M Ventures is the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. From its headquarters in the Netherlands and offices in Germany, USA and Israel, M Ventures invests globally in transformational ideas driven by innovative entrepreneurs. Taking an active role in its portfolio companies, M Ventures teams up with management teams and co-investors to translate scientific discoveries into commercial success. M Ventures focuses on identifying and financing novel solutions to some of the most difficult challenges, through company creation and equity investments in fields that will impact the vitality and sustainability of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany ‘s current and future businesses. For more information, visit www.m-ventures.com.
About Pfizer Ventures
Pfizer Ventures, the venture capital arm of Pfizer Inc., was founded in 2004 and invests for return in areas of current or future strategic interest to Pfizer. Pfizer Ventures seeks to remain at the forefront of life science advances, looking to identify and invest in emerging companies that are developing transformative medicines and technologies that have the potential to enhance Pfizer’s pipeline and shape the future of our industry.
About British Patient Capital
British Patient Capital is the trading name of British Patient Capital Limited, a wholly-owned commercial subsidiary of British Business Bank plc, the UK government’s economic development bank. It forms part of the British Business Bank’s plc’s commercial arm. Its mission is to enable long-term investment in innovative firms led by ambitious entrepreneurs who want to build large scale businesses. Launched in June 2018, British Patient Capital has £2.5bn to invest over 10 years in venture and venture growth capital to support high growth potential innovative UK businesses in accessing the long-term financing they require to scale up. Find out more at britishpatientcapital.co.uk.
About Oxford Science Enterprises
Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE) is an independent, billion-pound investment company, created in 2015 to found, fund and build transformational businesses via its unique partnership with the University of Oxford, the world’s #1 research university.
This partnership enables OSE to work with the brightest academic minds tackling the world’s toughest challenges and guarantees unrivalled access to their scientific research.
In collaboration with its global network of entrepreneurs and advisers, OSE shapes and nurtures complex ideas into successful businesses, while targeting attractive returns for shareholders.
Actively focused on a core portfolio of around 40 companies spanning three high-growth, high-impact sectors – Life Sciences, Health Tech, and Deep Tech – the company adopts a flexible, long-term investment approach, recognising the path from ground-breaking research to global markets takes time and resilience.
To date, OSE has invested £0.5 billion in over 80 ambitious companies built on Oxford science.
A key player in Oxford’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, OSE is highly motivated to foster an environment that catalyses pioneering research and steers it to commercial success.
Find out more: oxfordscienceenterprises.com | Twitter | LinkedIn.