Inscripta Secures $20 Million C+ Round to Accelerate High-Throughput Precision Genome Editing

VCBeat (WeChat Official Account: vcbeat) has learned that on April 4, gene-editing technology company Inscripta announced an additional $20 million in financing, building upon its $85.5 million Series C round raised in 2018 and bringing the total amount for this round to $105.5 million. Investors in this round include Venrock, Foresite Capital, Merieux Développement, Paladin Capital Group, MLS Capital, and NanoDimension.

Inscripta was founded in 2015 in Boulder, Colorado, with offices in Pleasanton and San Diego, California. The company is dedicated to creating the tools necessary to revolutionize how humans approach food, fuel, and disease treatment. These tools include a developed series of CRISPR enzymes, nucleases customized for researchers and commercial partners, and a comprehensive suite of gene editing solutions (instruments, reagents, and software). These technologies significantly enhance the speed and efficiency of multiplexed, precise gene editing. By removing barriers to single-cell engineering and gene editing research, Inscripta is ushering in a new era capable of fundamentally transforming human life. Currently, Inscripta operates a nuclease discovery and engineering platform.

Inscripta is developing a new class of CRISPR nucleases, known as MADzymes. MADzymes are characterized by their ability to recognize diverse PAM sequences and efficiently cleave DNA. Currently, Inscripta has released the DNA sequence of the enzyme MAD7 on its nuclease discovery and engineering platform. MAD7 is also the first enzyme identified within Inscripta’s MADzyme family.

In July 2018, Inscripta’s first enzyme, the MAD7 gene-editing system, received patent approval from the United States Patent and Trademark Office and was demonstrated to be effective in both microbial and mammalian systems. In December 2018, Inscripta announced the broad adoption of the MAD7 enzyme. MAD7 is a proprietary CRISPR enzyme offered by the company to commercial partners and academic researchers, with no upfront licensing fees and no “extension royalties” on new discoveries generated through the use of this technology.

Kevin Ness, CEO of Inscripta, said, “We are making rapid progress in developing our suite of innovative gene-editing tools, and the proceeds from this financing round will help us bring these tools to market in the second half of this year.”

Venrock is the venture capital arm of the Rockefeller family, founded in 1969 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California. Venrock manages $2 billion in assets, primarily providing funding and support services to entrepreneurs in the fields of technology, healthcare, media, and energy.

Foresite Capital focuses on the development and commercialization of transformative products to address unmet medical needs. The firm tends to invest in emerging leaders in the healthcare technology sector. Founded in 2011, it is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Merieux Developpement, founded in 2009 and headquartered in Lyon, France, is a growth and venture capital firm focused on development capital and innovation capital. The company primarily invests in enterprises in the biotechnology and healthcare sectors.

Paladin Capital Group, established in 2001 with an office in Washington, D.C., is a multi-stage investor focused on companies offering technologies, products, and services that address the global cybersecurity and digital infrastructure resilience needs of commercial and government clients.

MLS Capital（Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund, Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund) is a life sciences venture capital fund in Malaysia, specializing in early-stage investments in agricultural, industrial, and healthcare biotechnology. Established in late 2006, the fund currently manages $162 million in assets.

NanoDimension was founded in California, United States, in 2002. It is a venture capital firm specializing in investments in early- to mid-stage companies. The company primarily invests in enterprises operating in the fields of nanotechnology, life sciences, medical diagnostics, semiconductors, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals.

(Compiled by Li Chengping)