Nanoligent SL, spin-off of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and the Research Institute of the Hospital de Santa Creu i Sant Pau, focuses on developing new drugs for the treatment of more than 20 types of metastatic cancer. His treatment proposal is based on the targeted elimination of cancer cells that overexpress the CXCR4 receptor, a biomarker of poor prognosis and resistance to conventional therapy that is considered key in the processes of metastasis development. The company is developing a new patented nanotechnology platform, with the potential to overcome the limitations of current treatments based on conjugates of cytotoxic drugs with antibodies.
The company has just closed its first round of financing for 2,800,000 euros, which will allow it to encourage the development of multiple drug candidates and advance the preclinical development of its lead candidate in a variety of tumor types.
The latest investment has been provided by i&i Biotech Fund, an early-stage life sciences fund with offices in Luxembourg and Prague that is supported by the European Investment Fund. The new fund joins Nanoligent’s previous investors Italian Angels for Growth and AVANTECA Partners, both of which specialize in supporting innovative early-stage scientific companies.
“Less than a third of newly diagnosed metastatic patients respond to current therapies, making metastasis one of the most pressing unsolved challenges in cancer. With the support of i&i Biotech Fund, together with our existing investors, we will reach our current milestone focused on the selection of the best candidate from our portfolio of therapies aimed at metastasis”, highlights Montserrat Cano, CEO of Nanoligent.
“Nanoligent is the fifth investment of our fund and belongs to a group of targeted oncology therapies in our portfolio. We are very pleased with the uniqueness of its technology. The platform is developed by a team of highly motivated, experienced and fully committed scientists and managers. Their project has great potential to become an effective treatment for multiple types of metastatic cancer”, says Jaromir Zahrádka, managing partner of i&i Biotech Fund.
Two of the previous investors have already joined Nanoligent’s Board of Directors, which currently consists of Michele Marzola (Italian Angels for Growth), Michael Milos (Avanteca Partners), Manuel Rodríguez (president) and Montserrat Cano (secretary).
“We are delighted to welcome the i&i Biotech Fund to Nanoligent. Due to his scientific diligence and professionalism in his management, he will be an important partner for Nanoligent and we are happy to be able to continue investing together”, emphasizes Michele Marzola, from Italian Angels for Growth.
In the other hand, Michael Milos of AVANTECA Partners considers that i&i Biotech “is the right partner for the development of Nanoligent. He has demonstrated deep scientific knowledge, in addition to enjoying a good connection with the pharmaceutical industry. Together, we hope to take Nanoligent’s development plan effectively into the next stages.”
