SR One leads the $37.5m B round for the gene therapy company with existing corporate investor MedImmune Ventures also investing.
Applied Genetic Technologies Corp. (AGTC), a US-based biotechnology company that receives much of its technology licenced from the University of Florida, has raised a $37.5m series B round.
GlaxoSmithKline’s venture unit SR One led the round along with life science venture firm Alta Partners. They were joined by new investor Osage University Partners, a venture fund that invests in university start-ups. Also joining the round were MedImmune Ventures, a corporate venturing unit of AstraZeneca, and existing ventureinvestors Intersouth Partners, and InterWest.
Intersouth, InterWest, and MedImmune all participated in two previous rounds in 2003 and 2009, which raised $27m and $11.8m, respectively. Venture firm Skyline Ventures also participated in 2003. The company has stated that, in total, the Florida-based firm has raised $88m, including $5.5m in grants.
David Day, director of technology licensing at the University of Florida, said: “These gene therapy products that AGTC is working on are almost like miracles. These are the kinds of things that change people’s lives in a permanent way for the better. To get cures for diseases closer to market is great.”
The funding will be used to move AGTC’s genetic therapy through human trials. If the trials prove successful, they will clear a path for better treatments of rare genetic respiratory and retinal diseases.
This article was repurposed from our sister publication Global University Venturing.
