GenomePlus Completes Tens of Millions RMB Pre-A Financing to Accelerate Launch of Multi-Cancer Early Detection Products
VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that Jiangsu Gaomei Gene Technology Co., Ltd., a biotech enterprise specializing in early cancer detection that had just participated in the “Chuangye Jiangbei” competition in Nanjing, recently completed a Pre-A financing round worth tens of millions of yuan. The round was solely invested by Gaoxin Venture Capital, under the Nanjing Jiangbei New Area Science and Technology Investment Group. This marks Gaomei Gene’s first fundraising since its successful merger with Zhejiang Gaomei Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (Gomics) and Nuoen Biotechnology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. See details: “[Exclusive] Gaomei Biotech and Norn Biotech Successfully Merge, Accelerating R&D and Promotion of Early Cancer Detection》
WinX Capital continues to serve as the exclusive financial advisor.
Lu Guohua, CEO of Jiangsu Gaomei Gene Technology Co., Ltd., expressed his gratitude for the strong support from the investor, Jiangbei Science and Technology Investment. The proceeds from this financing round will primarily be used to accelerate the market launch of liver cancer early detection products (characterized by high sensitivity and high specificity) and to facilitate the regulatory registration and filing of in vitro diagnostic (IVD) products for liver cancer early screening. Additionally, the funding will further expand Gaomei Gene’s leading advantage in its early detection database covering multiple cancer types (already encompassing the ten most common cancers among the Chinese population) and continue to advance the research and development of early detection technologies for digestive system tumors and gynecological tumors.
Jiangsu Gaomei Gene Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Gaomei Gene”), located in the Gene Building of Nanjing Jiangbei New Area, is a high-tech enterprise focusing on tumor epigenetics and large-scale data analysis, with business coverage in early cancer screening, companion diagnostics, dynamic monitoring, and prognostic assessment. Currently, Gaomei Gene is concentrating on the research and development of early cancer detection products, and expects to launch an early detection technology product for liver cancer in early next year. The company’s Chief Scientist, Professor Sun Deqiang, a national-level talent, has been dedicated to epigenetics research for over ten years and has achieved fruitful results.
During his tenure, Professor Deqiang Sun has published more than 30 papers in prestigious journals such as *Nature Genetics* and *Cell Stem Cell*, including over 10 articles as first or corresponding author. The cumulative impact factor of these publications exceeds 250, and their citation counts far surpass the average for journal articles, with individual papers receiving approximately 800 and 400 citations, respectively. He has developed seven open-source bioinformatics software tools for methylation analysis. Among them, MOABS has become the most widely adopted analysis platform globally and is the preferred software for researchers studying cancer methylation data both domestically and internationally. Notably, it serves as the analysis platform for the Broad Institute, the largest NIH-funded genome sequencing center in the United States, jointly established by the biomedical and genomics research centers of MIT and Harvard University. Professor Sun leads a multidisciplinary R&D team comprising experts in bioinformatics, clinical medicine, biochemistry, and biopharmaceuticals. The team has grown to over 20 members, including 10 PhD holders (five of whom are postdoctoral fellows). This robust R&D team has significantly accelerated the pace of product development.
Regarding Gaomei Gene’s Pre-A financing round, an investment executive from the Nanjing Jiangbei New Area Science and Technology Investment Group (hereinafter referred to as “Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment”) expressed strong confidence in Gaomei Gene’s team and its key technological advantages in early cancer detection, and highlighted three major areas of synergy for their collaboration:
First, Gaomei Gene focuses on research in the field of cancer epigenetics, particularly in the area of early cancer detection. The company has accumulated reserves of key technologies and is about to launch a single-cancer-type early detection product. Its existing technological reserves and databases will further accelerate the research and development of multi-cancer-type early detection. cfDNA methylation detection technology is currently emerging as the technological pinnacle in the cancer early detection industry. Due to its dual specificity for both tumor presence and tissue origin, it has become the optimal choice for current cancer early detection technologies. However, mastering this technology requires overcoming multiple significant hurdles, which is one of the main reasons why most biotechnology companies hesitate to enter this field. Currently, only a few companies worldwide possess complete reserves of these key technologies.
Whether it is the library preparation technology for ultra-low-content cfDNA, noise-reduction databases, or unique marker design, all of these require substantial accumulation of technical expertise. Jiangbei Science & Technology Investment’s investment in Gaomei Gene fulfills both the group’s mission, as the financing and investment development platform of Jiangbei New Area, to provide financial services for technological innovation projects, and its corporate social responsibility, as the group seeks to give back to society by supporting Gaomei Gene in achieving early screening and diagnosis of cancer.
Second, Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment possesses a robust public service platform for biomedicine, which includes the largest gene sequencing center in China, a mass spectrometry testing and analysis public service platform, and a supercomputing big data center. It also hosts the Nanjing High-Tech Precision Medicine Laboratory. These platform resources and qualifications will be made directly available to Gaomei Gene, effectively reducing its fixed asset investment during R&D and optimizing the efficiency of shared public service platform resources.
Third, Jiangbei Science and Technology Investment is currently constructing the National Health and Medical Big Data (Nanjing) Center. Gaomei Genetics possesses epigenetic maps for multiple cancer types and a large-scale database, while its bioinformatics team demonstrates significant technological leadership within China. Following their integration, the two entities will accelerate the development of the National Health and Medical Big Data (Nanjing) Center and further expand Gaomei Genetics’ leading advantage in the construction of cancer epigenetic databases.
Currently, Gaomei Gene is conducting research projects on liver cancer, lung cancer, esophageal cancer, ovarian cancer, and other malignancies in collaboration with several renowned hospitals in China, including West China Hospital of Sichuan University, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, and The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University. Professor Sun Deqiang, Chief Scientist, stated that research in the field of cancer epigenetics holds significant application value across multiple directions of oncology. In addition to Gaomei’s current applications in early cancer detection, epigenetic research can also be applied to studies of the tumor microenvironment, molecular subtyping diagnosis of tumors, assessment of cancer recurrence risk, assessment of cancer metastasis risk, guidance for overcoming cancer drug resistance, and the development of epigenetic drugs.
CEO Lu Guohua stated that to advance scientific research collaboration, Gaomei Gene has officially established a Technology Services Division. In particular, regarding the aforementioned research topics, Gaomei Gene welcomes collaborative partnerships with industry enterprises, clinical institutions, and research organizations, striving to accelerate the translation of research findings into technological products to benefit more high-risk individuals and cancer patients.
Professor Sun Deqiang, Chief Scientist, expressed his sincere gratitude to Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment for its investment support in this round. He stated that he would deepen his development efforts on the fertile ground of Nanjing Jiangbei New Area and achieve leapfrog growth on the high-quality service platform provided by Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment.
Dr. Wang Jinghong, Co-Founder of WinX Capital, the financial advisor for this transaction, stated that Gaomei Gene’s rapid acquisition of investment from prominent institutional investors following its successful merger with Nuoen Bio underscores its clear leading position. The company has demonstrated significant technological advantages, both in its multi-cancer database and in its algorithmic capabilities.
Nanjing Jiangbei New Area Science and Technology Investment Group Co., Ltd. is a science and technology innovation investment and financing development platform directly under the Administration Committee of Jiangbei New Area. It is responsible for the investment and construction of science and technology innovation projects and the science and technology innovation service system within the New Area, undertaking the implementation of integrated “industry-university-research” projects and providing supporting financial services for small and medium-sized sci-tech enterprises.
Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment has invested in and supported nearly 150 technology-driven and innovative enterprises, with a total investment amounting to approximately RMB 3 billion. To date, Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment Group has established more than 20 funds, with a combined scale exceeding RMB 10 billion. These funds cover industrial platforms such as the Jiangbei New Area Industrial Technology Research and Innovation Park, the Bio-medicine Valley, and the Intelligent Manufacturing Industrial Park, continuously introducing high-quality project, financial, talent, and cutting-edge technological resources to the New Area. Focusing on the leading industries of Jiangbei New Area and rooting itself in industrial parks to identify high-potential projects, Jiangbei Sci-Tech Investment Group is gradually building a new model of sci-tech investment that fosters synergy among industrial parks, enterprises, and industrial capital.