Maxion Therapeutics’ £58m Series A raise gears Knotbody to clinic
Maxion Therapeutics has raised £58million in a Series A finance round as it advances its KnotBody programme towards the clinic.
Maxion was founded in 2020 by highly respected biotech entrepreneurs and scientists Dr John McCafferty, CTO, and Dr Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt, CSO. Dr McCafferty previously co-invented antibody phage display, which was the subject of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to his co-inventor Sir Gregory Winter.
The company’s revolutionary KnotBody technology combines the benefits of knottins – cysteine-rich mini-proteins which are natural ion channel modulators – with antibodies. The combination creates safe, efficacious and long-acting ion channel modulators.
Ion channel and GPCR dysfunction is implicated in a wide range of debilitating diseases. Current treatments, based on small molecule drugs, often suffer from poor efficacy and side effects due to the lack of selectivity and exposure.
Compared to small molecules, engineered antibodies offer superior selectivity and are well proven therapeutically. Despite these obvious advantages, antibody discovery against ion channels and GPCRs has been very challenging, with no antibodies against ion channels currently in clinical development.
Based at The Works on Unity Campus, Maxion has changed the script by developing antibody-based KnotBody drugs for ion channel- and G protein coupled receptor (GPCR)-driven diseases. Its proprietary pipeline of KnotBody molecules feature “first-in-class” and “best-in-class” potential. Maxion’s lead KnotBody programme, MAX001, is currently in preclinical development to target a broad spectrum of inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis and inflammatory bowel disease. Other early-stage programmes include KnotBody molecules for the treatment of pain and cardiovascular disease.
This oversubscribed Series A funding round was led by General Catalyst, with additional investment from new investors, British Patient Capital, a commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, Solasta Ventures and Eli Lilly and Company, and supported by existing investors LifeArc Ventures, Monograph Capital, and BGF.
Following the raise, Elena Viboch, managing director at General Catalyst, and Emma Johnson, senior investment manager, life sciences at British Patient Capital, join Maxion’s board.
Elena Viboch said: “We believe Maxion is radically shifting the biologics discovery process to address the most challenging drug targets such as ion channels and GPCRs.
“With a strong team and differentiated platform, Maxion is well-positioned to discover and develop medicines that matter.”
Arndt Schottelius, Maxion’s CEO, said: “This landmark fundraising – one of the largest European private biotech financings since the beginning of 2024 – highlights the significant potential of our technology and development pipeline.
“KnotBodies represent a potential breakthrough biologic drug modality, delivering greater potency, selectivity, and durability. We believe that KnotBodies will provide transformational new therapeutic options for ion channel- and GPCR-driven diseases, across a wide range of therapeutic areas with a remaining high unmet medical need.
“The calibre of our international investor syndicate validates our approach, and I would like to welcome our new investors to Maxion and thank our existing investors for their continued support.”
