Scottish borders-based Ryboquinn acquires viral delivery comany Nanogenics
pharmafile | July 20, 2018 | News story | Medical Communications | M&A, MA, Scotland, acquisitions, gene therapy, nanogenics, ryboquinn
The Scottish biotech company Ryboquinn has acquired English partner Nanogenics Solutions in a deal worth £4.45 million.
The Selkirk-based firm will merge with Nanogenics Solutions to form Nanogenics Limited. The new company promises to “revolutionise gene therapy by pioneering the safe, efficacious and regular dosing of all forms of gene therapy.”
Nanogenics Solutions is currently in the process of developing an artificial virus which acts as a custom built delivery system that can be modified to target different cell types for use in delivering gene therapy.
Currently, viruses and liposomes are used to deliver gene therapy. However severe side effects and expensive technical problems have limited the technology’s potential.
The protein based nanoparticle LipTide, mimics natural viruses, while circumventing the many issues associated with viral delivery. The ability to regularly dose gene therapy payloads using LipTide may revolutionise approaches to gene therapy.
Nanogenics CEO Dr Alan Walker commented, stating that the merger: “will offer real hope to those millions of patients living with diseases who have been unable to benefit from the advances in gene therapy because, until now, it has been so difficult to safely deliver the correct gene therapy to the right target. That can now change and we are already working with six major BioTech companies who want to access this exciting platform.”
The technology may also be expanded for use in enhancing chemotherapy and radiotherapy. A clinical trial is planned at Christie Hospital Manchester in 2020.
Louis Goss
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