BioMoti seeks to transform the treatment of cancer by targeted delivery of therapeutics to the intracellular space of cancer cells; aiming to dramatically increase efficacy whilst reducing side effects. The company wanted to move forward with trials on a promising new platform.
BioMoti needed support for preclinical studies to test their novel therapeutics for ovarian, breast and pancreatic cancer.
It is exciting for us to be supported by Innovate UK to explore our platform’s interactions with the immune system following promising efficacy data in cancer models. BioMoti is making great progress on a final seed investment round to support commercialisation. — Dr Davidson Ateh, CEO of BioMoti
BioMoti applied for funding through Innovate UK’s Biomedical Catalyst programme, for a project that made use of Queen Mary researchers’ expertise in pathology and disease mechanisms, together with Pharmidex’s preclinical drug development capabilities. The Queen Mary Business Development team was key to identifying the appropriate internal and external partners, developing the project plan, and managing the grant application process.
The consortium was awarded £662K towards a project valued at £889K, of which Queen Mary received £133K. The project began in 2017 and was successfully completed in 2019.
BioMoti were able to advance their novel cancer therapeutic platform, Oncojan, a promising new class of drug-loaded particles designed to precisely target and gain entry to cancer cells. The project was fundamental to driving pre-clinical studies that have shown a highly successful tenfold increase in drug concentration compared to the current standard of care.
Professor Joanne Martin, Professor of Pathology at Queen Mary said: “Oncojans™ were first developed in my laboratory here at Queen Mary with support from the BBSRC, Heptagon Fund and Barts and The London Charity. We are passionate about what a difference we could make for patients, and it is great to have secured Innovate UK funding.”
Business Development Manager, (Science & Engineering)
Business Development Manager, (Health)