[Funding alert] Immuneel Therapeutics raises $15 mn in funding

Immuneel Therapeutics, a biotech startup, has raised $15 million in a round-headed by Eight Roads Ventures, True North, and F-Prime Capital, with additional contributions from existing investors.

Founded in 2019 by Biocon founder and chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Dr. Siddhartha
Mukherjee, eminent U.S oncologist and author of the Pulitzer prize winning novel, “The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer”, and Dr. Kush Parmar, Immuneel is on a mission to bring cell and gene therapy programs, especially with clinical data, to India at an affordable cost.

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With a focus on maintaining global standards, the company is developing cutting edge programs, delivered through partnerships with leading hospitals. In 2021, the company had established the first cGMP-approved integrated cell therapy development and manufacturing facility at the Mazumdar-Shaw Cancer Centre at Narayana Health City (Bengaluru).

Immuneel Therapeutics (‘Immuneel’), India’s leading biotech start-up focused on creating access to Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell therapy (CAR-T) and other cellular immunotherapies for the management and treatment of cancers, has begun patient dosing in a CAR-T trial named “IMAGINE”. This phase II trial is the first industry sponsored CAR-T trial in India and is now actively enrolling patients at Narayana Hrudayalaya,
Bengaluru.

“Today, we are extremely proud to be able to demonstrate our focus on scientific rigor as well as clinical and manufacturing excellence by bringing CAR-T therapy to the clinic through our IMAGINE trial. This trial marks an important step forward for us in delivering transformational cell-based immunotherapies to patients, truly enabling our patients with potential cure. IMAGINE opens a world of possibilities. With our successful Series A funding, we are excited to continue building our innovation and clinical delivery engine with our investors, given their excellent track record, particularly in global healthcare and innovation.” commented Dr. Arun Anand, Director & Chief Operating Officer, Immuneel Therapeutics.

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CAR-T therapies, previously not available in India, have shown promising results for patients who have exhausted all other means of treatment in a range of blood cancers. These therapies are available internationally at USD 350K+ per dose, making the IMAGINE trial the first step towards bringing affordable treatments with global quality and clinical data to patients in India.

Ms. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Co-Founder & Director, Immuneel Therapeutics reacted, “This milestone is significant in building an eco-system to accelerate and make cell therapies accessible to patients in India, in line with global standards at affordable and disruptive costs. Personalized cell therapies are in their nascency the world over and we have an opportunity to differentiate through partnerships and cutting-edge innovation.”

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The company also stated that patient treatment has begun at Narayana Hrudyalaya in Bengaluru as part of phase II studies of its Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T) to target blood cancer, termed IMAGINE.

“IMAGINE has opened up doors to a second chance at life with potential cure, both for children and adults with terminal blood cancers, and we are very excited to have this opportunity to participate in this key trial with Indian patients for a global quality product,” said IMAGINE’s Principal Investigators Dr. Sharat Damodar and Dr. Sunil Bhat at Narayana Health.

About Immuneel Therapeutics

Immuneel is a pioneering clinical stage start-up company leading the change in cell & gene therapies & personalized immunotherapy for patients in India. Headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, Immuneel is a research-led, fully integrated cell & gene therapies company committed to bringing breakthrough cancer treatments to India, affordably & build a portfolio of next generation cell therapies.