Skip to main content

Anaveon raises CHF 35 million

| News

Anaveon raises CHF 35 million

26.02.2019

Anaveon, an immuno-oncology biotech, has successfully concluded a Series A financing round led by Syncona, a UK Life Sciences fund, and joined by the Novartis Venture Fund. The company was founded with financing from BaseLaunch, the healthcare accelerator of BaselArea.swiss in December 2017 and in 2018 also raised additional seed money from the UZH Life Sciences Fund.

Anaveon is developing a selective interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2 receptor) agonist to fuel a patient’s immune system to respond to tumors. The naturally occurring IL-2 receptor stimulates a type of immune cell called a T-cell to attack tumors. Il-2 is already being used for the treatment of cancer. However, there are side effects and dose limiting toxicities associated with IL-2 therapy. Anaveon’s approach plans to overcome these challenges and the proceeds of the Series A financing  will now enable further development of its lead compound, as announced in a press release.

Anaveon was founded by Onur Boyman, Professor and Chair in the Department of Immunology at the University of Zurich (UZH), and Andreas Katopodis. Prior to this, Andreas Katopodis was Director of Autoimmunity, Transplantation and Inflammatory Disease at the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research.

You might also be interested in

Roche investing an additional 1.2 billion Swiss francs in Basel

Roche will be putting an additional 1.2 billion Swiss francs towards the renovation of its site in Basel. This investment...
Read More

Nouscom secures 67.5 million euros in financing

Biotech company Nouscom has raised 67.5 million euros in a series C financing round. The Basel-based firm intends to use...
Read More

How open innovation in healthtech hubs is fueling the rise of digital healthcare

How the ever-increasing uptake of digital solutions is enhancing patient engagement, increasing access to care and lowering the cost of...
Read More

Paradigm shift in pain management

Pain is a crucial sensation for survival, but it can also drive us to depression and long-term suffering if not...
Read More

Investors stump up 3.7 million Swiss francs in Onena Medicines

Onena Medicines has secured an investment of 3.7 million Swiss francs. The portfolio company of the biotech startup incubator BaseLaunch...
Read More