Mar 14, 2018 | By Benedict
OxSyBio, a bioprinting spin-out of Oxford University in the UK, has raised 10 million pounds ($14 million) to develop a hybrid biological materials 3D printer that makes tissues from both living and synthetic cells.
You might remember our story last year about the droplet-based 3D printing technique that was allowing Oxford researchers to build high-resolution living tissue structures. That exciting research promised—among other things—an end to animal testing, and was published in the journal Scientific Reports.
The Oxford University spin-out behind that research is now in a much better position to develop that new tissue 3D bioprinting technology, because it has raised around $14 million in a Series A funding round. Contributors included IP Group, Parkwalk, and Woodford Investment Management.
OxSyBio’s goal is to 3D print therapeutic tissues for patients using living cells or non-living artificial cells, effectively “patching up” damaged body parts with healthy new tissue, and the bioprinting spin-out says the funding will allow it “to continue translating this incredible technology into real-world applications.”
The biological 3D printing company is built upon the research of Professor Hagan Bayley, the founding academic behind Oxford Nanopore Technologies, and was spun out from Oxford’s Department of chemistry back in 2014. Bayley commented that the new funding would provide “the long-term capital required to deliver our ambition of building affordable tissues for patients.”
OxSyBio’s newly raised $14 million can be added to the one million pounds ($1.4 million) the bioprinting company raised during seed funding, taking its total raised to $15.4 million.
“Biological functions are difficult to create using electrical or mechanical devices, therefore harnessing the power of biological materials in non-living devices will be highly disruptive,” commented Dr Hadrian Green, CEO of OxSyBio. “This investment is testament to the power of the original ideas and the hard work of our Chief Technology Officer Sam Olof, the OxSyBio team, and the founding lab to turn research into reality.
“OxSyBio wishes to pay tribute to Oxford University and the unique culture of patient capital, pioneered by Neil Woodford and IP Group, which is instrumental to delivering long-term transformational technologies.”
The new investors appear confident that their $14 million is going to the right people and the right bioprinting research. Moray Wright, Chief Executive Officer at investment firm Parkwalk Advisors, commented that the 3D printing of living cells has “massive potential impact right across the board.”
Besides Bayley, Green, and Olof, OxSyBio’s team also includes Dr David J. Lunn, Dr Joan Gannon, and Dr Colin Barker.
Posted in 3D Printer Company
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