Press Releases

Intercytex raises £7 million for pioneering research into kidney transplant and human tissue replacement technologies

Manchester, 2nd March 2001: Accelerating its research into regenerative technologies for kidney transplantation and new solutions for the replacement of damaged tissues and organs, Intercytex today announced that it has raised £7 million to take its innovative programmes to clinical proof of concept.

Intercytex was founded by its CEO, Dr Paul Kemp, in 1999. The Company received seed funds of £1 million during 2000 from the Johnson and Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC) and Avlar BioVentures (Avlar) to undertake research into novel regenerative technologies. The latest round of private equity financing was jointly led by 3i and Merlin Biosciences. Further funds were also committed by The Cambridge Gateway Fund and Temasek Capital of Singapore along with existing investors JJDC and Avlar. This is the first time this syndicate have co-invested together.

Intercytex is developing a broad portfolio of products aimed at providing alternative therapeutic strategies for the treatment of several disease states including kidney disease and hair regeneration.

End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is a world-wide medical problem. In the US alone, it affects over 300,000 patients each year and accounts for more than $13 billion of the annual American health-care spend.

With the goal of providing an alternative strategy to dialysis or transplantation in kidney disease, Intercytex plans to use patented technology involving the transplantation of kidney precursors into patients with end-stage renal disease. In experimental conditions, these organs have been found to assume roles of the normal kidney. From a clinical standpoint, Intercytex' solutions could improve both quality of life and morbidity in renal patients.

Hair loss affects approximately forty percent of men and twenty percent of women aged fifty and over. In the US alone, an estimated 40 million men and 20 million women suffer from baldness and spend $1.5 billion annually on hair loss therapies. Addressing this market, Intercytex is pioneering novel methods for the transplant of dermal hair follicle cells. This technology could be used as a means of regenerating hair, overcoming the need to remove whole hairs from one part of the body and subsequent transplant to another. It also opens the potential for large numbers of hair-generating cells to be expanded in tissue culture and packaged as a one-step solution to hair-loss.

Intercytex has also made groundbreaking discoveries in the field of cellular reprogramming which could lead to production of stem cells without the use of human foetal tissue or oocytes. This unique technology could engineer new tissues and organ structures such as nerve, heart muscle or blood cells, opening the potential to formulate novel treatments for stroke, heart attacks and leukaemia.

Dr Michael Leek, Commercial Director of Intercytex, comments "The global market for regenerative technologies highlights a multi-billion dollar unmet clinical need. This fundraising is a clear endorsement of the potential presented by Intercytex' unique technologies, and the world class team of scientists driving our portfolio pipeline."

Peter Keen, Managing Director of Merlin Biosciences, who will be taking a role on the Board, adds: "Intercytex is Britain's first dedicated regenerative medicine business. Its technologies are unique and address the pressing needs of clinics for new solutions in kidney disease, tissue engineered skin and hair follicle regeneration."

Andrew Fraser, Investment Director, 3i Healthcare commented further “Intercytex is a justifiably ambitious company, the directors have rapidly assembled an experienced team with product development expertise in this field. We plan to support the Company with further funding to develop Intercytex into a significant player in its market.”