New UK biopharmaceutical group Sitryx has launched operations with $30 million to help it develop disease-modifying therapeutics in immunometabolism.
The company, founded with seed funding from SV Health investors, says it raised the funds from a syndicate of specialist international healthcare investors co-led by SV Health Investors and Sofinnova Partners and that also included Longwood Fund and GlaxoSmithKline.
Work in the field of immunometabolism is focused on investigating the role of metabolic pathways in immune cell function, changes to which are known to be key in a number of severe diseases.
“Correcting immune cell function and/or inhibiting tumour cell growth through immunometabolic therapies have the potential to be key, complementary and highly differentiated approaches to treating disease,” according to the firm’s release.
“Immunometabolism is an extremely exciting and compelling scientific area and, at Sitryx, we have seen that modulation of these key cellular pathways has broad therapeutic potential across multiple disorders with unmet medical need, particularly in the areas of immuno-oncology and immuno-inflammation,” said Neil Weir, its chief executive.
“We are delighted to welcome leading specialist investors to the company, which further validates the strength of our scientific expertise and ambitions.”
Sitryx is working on a broad range of immunometabolic targets, addressing oncology and immuno-inflammatory indications, with support from GSK.
The drug giant’s interest in Sitryx stems from work within the Immunology Network, an open collaboration initiative connecting GSK to academics working in the field.
