By Kristy Dorsey
Glasgow biotech company ILC Therapeutics has secured a “significant” undisclosed sum from its first global investor after attracting international attention for its work exploring Covid-19 therapeutic treatments.
The Scottish firm, which is working with the University of St Andrews on novel treatments to keep coronavirus patients on ventilators, has become the first European recipient of money from Medical Incubator Japan. MIJ is an independent venture capital company focused on early-stage life sciences companies.
Employing five people, ILC was set up in 2012 by professor Bill Stimson, founder of the department of immunology at the University of Strathclyde. Its work in the field of the innate immune system – which is involved in a number of diseases ranging from asthma to Alzheimer’s and cancer – has also shown promise as a late stage treatment option for Covid-19 patients.
READ MORE: Scottish university testing new Covid-19 treatment
ILC chief executive Alan Walker said: “This latest investment from MIJ demonstrates the growing recognition of ILC Therapeutics as a global leader in modulating the innate immune system, and we are thrilled to have them aboard. We feel hugely positive about this next chapter in ILC Therapeutics’ development.”
Other major investors in the company include the Scottish Investment Bank and EOS Advisory.
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