Kynos Therapeutics has emerged from 'stealth mode' with £9m to finance its lead KMO inhibitor programme through Phase 1 clinical trials.
The spin-out from the University of Edinburgh is based on more than a decade of research into kynurenine pathway and kynurenine 3-monooxygenase (KMO) biology and its inhibitors.
Its technology was co-developed during a multi-year collaborative programme between the university-based founders and GSK. The collaboration concluded in 2019, with data, rights and intellectual property transferred to the university - although GSK is eligible for a royalty should a medicine be registered.
The £6.5m initial venture financing round was led by Epidarex Capital, joined by IP Group and Scottish Enterprise.
Kynos has also been awarded £2.5m through an Innovate UK grant to fund a maiden in-human clinical trial.
KMO plays a major role in the control of inflammation and metabolism, contributing to the regulation of the immune system. It is a mitochondrial enzyme that converts kynurenine into biologically active 3HK that damages cells. Blocking KMO reduces 3HK, protecting against tissue damage.
Kynos’s pipeline is focused on three key areas: in critical illness post-surgery; in conditions driven by inflammation; and in cancers where inflammation is preventing the immune system from fighting back.
The financing will be used to build out its core team and to fund preclinical indication expansion studies, as well as to initiate development of oral formulations of KMO inhibitors. These activities will run in parallel to the clinical trial.
Kynos’ core founding team are experts in KMO biology and medicinal chemistry: chief executive Damian J Mole, professor of surgery at the University of Edinburgh Centre for Inflammation Research; and chief scientific officer Scott Webster, professor of medicines discovery at the university's Centre for Cardiovascular Science.
Industry engagement and launch of the spin-out company have been supported by Edinburgh Innovations, the University of Edinburgh’s commercialisation service.
Mole explained: “Our goal is to improve health and make a positive impact for patients, by developing our programme in the therapeutic area of inflammation and immunometabolism.
“Our programmes are based on extensive industry collaborative research with a robust science base supported by multiple high impact publications - there are no approved or marketed medicines for our gateway indication, for which there is a significant unmet need.”
Following the financing, Dr Elizabeth Roper, partner at Epidarex Capital, and Dr Tassos Konstantinou, investment manager for life sciences at IP Group, have joined Kynos’s board of directors.
Roper said: “Kynos has a first-in-class set of KMO inhibitors that we believe have potential in multiple therapeutic areas - we look forward to working closely with the team and the syndicate to progress these assets into the clinic and to realise the potential of Kynos’ world-class science.”
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