Enhanc3D Genomics, a functional genomics company, has raised £10 million ($11.2 million) in series A financing.
The funds will be used to accelerate the development of its proprietary technology platform – GenLink3D. The financing was led by BGF and Parkwalk Advisors, with support from existing private investors and Bioqube Ventures.
The funding will enable Enhanc3D to capitalize on its validated platform’s ability to rapidly and deeply decode the non-coding genome into hundreds of new candidate targets for diagnostic and therapeutic asset development.
Initially it will generate large datasets across multiple immune-cell types that have broad relevance to auto-immune diseases, cancer and aging. Enhanc3D will also be expanding its team, and moving into larger facilities in Cambridge’s St John’s Innovation Centre in the U.K..
Chris Torrance, a cancer researcher and biotechnology entrepreneur, will join Enhanc3D’s board as non-executive chair. Torrance is the founder and chairman of Phoremost, a UK-based biopharmaceutical company dedicated to ‘Drugging the Undruggable.’
Decoding 3D DNA architecture
Spun out from Peter Fraser’s laboratory, which pioneered investigation of the dynamic spatial organization of the genome at the Babraham Institute, Enhanc3D’s vision is to unlock the full potential of the human genome by decoding the 3D DNA architecture.
Current whole-genome sequencing techniques only provide a linear view of our DNA, while the 3D organization modulates biological processes crucial for cell differentiation and development. The company’s technology, GenLink3D, integrates molecular biology technologies with machine learning to map the 3D structure of the genome at high resolution.
The platform comprises a proprietary “promoter capture” technology that enables high-resolution, allowing the capture of previously unseen genetic markers. Also, this advance permits for the first time the direct, and therefore efficient, decoding of very large human genetic variation datasets into novel disease mechanisms. While the platform has a breadth of potential therapeutic applications, Enhanc3D will initially focus on identifying novel biomarkers for patient stratification and treatment targets for cancer, aging and autoimmune conditions.
Torrance said: “The GenLink3D platform is a key transformational advance in our ability to decode and action novel targets for disease diagnosis and treatment in high-throughput and precision. Enhanc3D is another shining example of genomic technologies emerging from the Cambridge cluster and one I am truly proud to be part of as it embarks on this exciting phase of expansion.”