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Autifony Therapeutics is developing pharmaceutical treatments for hearing disorders, which affect a significant proportion of the population. Autifony ‘s approach is focused on Kv3 potassium channel modulation, a novel mechanism of action. These ion channels regulate neuronal activity within the auditory system, and our new drugs aim to treat age related hearing loss and tinnitus. The lead programme entered Phase I clinical trials in May 2013.

Given Autifony’s focus on modulation of Kv3 channels, which have also been implicated in other neurological and psychiatric disorders, there are opportunities for Autifony to investigate these other indications with compounds with different profiles. Autifony was recently awarded Technology Strategy Board funding to progress the development of a candidate drug for the treatment of schizophrenia, working together with academic collaborators at the Universities of Manchester and Newcastle.

Autifony Therapeutics Limited was formed in 2011 as a spin-out from GlaxoSmithKline. The company is privately funded by leading venture capital investors SV Life Sciences, Imperial Innovations and Pfizer Venture Investments. Autifony’s head office is at the Imperial College Incubator in London, and has a subsidiary with medicinal chemistry and biology labs based in Verona, Italy. 

Glythera is an emerging biotechnology company specializing in the development of next generation biotherapeutics through the application of its advanced proprietary conjugation and glycosylation technologies.

Located in the North East of the UK with its dedicated bioprocessing and chemistry development laboratories at Newcastle University, Glythera is positioned as a critical partner in any development program centred on its PermaLink™ and PermaCarb™ technologies.

Our PermaLink™ platform supports highly selective site specific conjugation whilst demonstrating significantly increased stability with our core focus being in the development of enhanced Antibody Drug Conjugates and bi-specifics.

Glythera’s PermaCarb™ technology allows direct substitution of endogenous glycan’s or correction of micro-heterogeneity using stable analogues to improve bioavailability and efficacy and has been demonstrated in a range of next generation biotherapeutics.

Our Mission is to enable improved clinical regimes through the creation of the next generation of safe, efficacious biotherapeutic products in oncology and therapeutic indications.

Hypha collaborates with pharma/biotech and agrochemical groups in the following areas

1. Production of metabolites of clinical and preclinical stage compounds that are difficult to synthesise using metabolising microbes:
+ mg amounts for MetID, quantification standards
+ gram quantities for tox/pharmacological studies
+ includes glucuronides and chemically intractable hydroxyl derivatives 

Our microbial biotransformation service is also used to improve PK/solubility in hit-to-lead compounds 

2. Niche natural products hit-finding
Licensing access to Hypha's MycoDiverse natural products library. 
+ Used by biotech and pharma to find hit compounds against "difficult-to-hit" targets
+ Molecular weight range mostly between 200 and 400 DA
+ 50% novelty
+ Exclusive rights to develop and commercialise

3. Fermentation and purification of small molecules for semi-synthetic lead optimisation

MiNA Therapeutics is a virtual biotechnology company pioneering the activation of gene expression with short activating RNA (saRNA).

Harnessing a proprietary algorithm, MiNA is developing a revolutionary class of therapeutics that activate key genes in major disease pathways. MiNA's ability to selectively activate master regulatory genes represents a new frontier in precision medicine.

Oxford BioMedica (LSE:OXB) is a leading gene therapy and immunotherapy company with a platform of exclusive and pioneering technologies to design, develop and manufacture unique gene-based medicines. The Company’s technology platforms include a highly efficient LentiVector® gene delivery system; a single administration to provide long-lasting therapy with specific advantages for targeting CNS and ocular diseases, and a unique tumour antigen (5T4) which is an ideal target for anti-cancer therapy.

The Company’s pipeline addresses diseases for which there is currently no treatment or that are inadequately treated today, including ocular diseases, neurodegenerative disorders and cancer, and its product candidates have the potential to transform treatment landscapes.  Oxford BioMedica’s capabilities cover the entire product lifecycle, from research to development to GMP manufacturing, with collaborative partners such as Sanofi, Pfizer, Novartis and some of the most prestigious clinical centres worldwide.  The Company recently secured significant funding via UK Government competitive awards such as the TSB regenerative medicine/cell therapy grant and AMSCI to build a centre of excellence for specialist manufacture of gene-based therapies.

Through in-house development programmes and industry collaborations, Oxford BioMedica’s goal is to improve the lives of patients with debilitating and life-threatening diseases.  Further information is available at www.oxfordbiomedica.co.uk and www.oxbsolutions.co.uk.

Sphere Fluidics Limited is an innovative Life Sciences company which delivers miniaturised products, systems and collaboration services in field of single cell analysis.

Sphere’s core technology is in the field of high throughput Picodroplet generation and analysis and has significant patent portfolio that protects its core expertise. It enables ultra-high throughput analysis of single cells and generation of their genetic, transcriptomic and proteomic profiles in miniaturised (pl to nl) volumes.  

Uniquely, as well as allowing single cell studies, the systems enable the study of different, large biomolecules that interact with or are secreted by those single cells. The latter application is very powerful as many human biotherapeutics, industrial enzymes (isolated mainly from micro-organisms) and around 15% of the Human Proteome are secreted, so cannot readily be analysed using conventional technology

Sphere Fluidics' technology enables diverse applications such as study of the mechanism of cancer cell resistance to chemotherapy, generation of new enzymes and identification of novel microbial strains.

Sphere Fluidics has established multiple commercial partnerships, received Venture Capital investment and with its founders the Company have received almost £10 million in science and business funding to date.