InterVenn BioSciences has secured institutional investment of $9.4m led by biotech investor Genoa Ventures, with participation from True Ventures, Amplify Partners, Boost VC, and Prado SV.
Image: InterVenn BioSciences secures $9.4m funding. Photo: Courtesy of dream designs at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
The financing will be used to develop the company’s first product, a blood-based ovarian cancer diagnostic. Jenny Rooke founder and managing director at Genoa Ventures, and Adam D’Augelli, partner at True Ventures, will join InterVenn’s board of directors. Sunil Dhaliwal, general partner at Amplify Partners, will join as a board observer.
Glycoproteomics, an emerging field combining proteomics and glycomics, can help with better biomarker and target discovery, but produces an enormous amount of data in minutes that historically takes months to fully analyze and is often difficult to reproduce. By leveraging mass spectrometry, hi-res characterization of post-translational modifications, and artificial intelligence, InterVenn streamlines and expedites this process and ensures that any variability in the workflow–from the sample collection, processing, and all the way to instrument ingestion– is minimized and the results are reproducible. The company’s first product is a blood-based ovarian cancer diagnostic that is currently undergoing analytical and clinical validation. Once the validation and regulatory processes are completed, the company will begin offering a laboratory diagnostic test.
InterVenn BioSciences CEO Aldo Carrascoso said: “Today, the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer is extremely poor, despite its role in significantly improving survival rates. We’ve established a talented team of experts in AI, computational biology, mass spectrometry, software engineering, glycoproteomics, and product development who are dedicated to equipping physicians with a reliable, high-performing and cost-effective tool to change the narrative around ovarian cancer.”
Jenny Rooke said: “InterVenn BioSciences has assembled a world-class team that is developing a first of its kind platform aimed at rapidly and accurately harnessing the power of the glycoproteome for disease characterization and drug development.
“We believe that the company’s ovarian cancer test is the first of many applications of InterVenn’s powerful platform. Genoa Ventures is thrilled to support InterVenn for the journey ahead.”
Source: Company Press Release