Veronica Gambillara Fonck, Ph.D., has been one member of a group of scientists that have followed each other across a dizzying landscape of spinoffs and new ventures in vaccines R&D. Now, the team has come together once again to launch Swiss biotech GlycoEra AG with a $49 million series A.
GlycoEra's origins are enough to make your head spin. The biotech spun off from LimmaTech, which itself spun out of a GlaxoSmithKline specialist vaccines unit known as GlycoVaxyn.
It you're still with us, GlycoEra has now emerged with funding co-led by 5AM Ventures, Roche Venture Fund and Sofinnova Partners. LimmaTech also pitched in after spinning off the brand new biotech in December 2020.
GlycoEra aims to use its glycoengineering platform to develop therapies for a range of diseases. The technology develops glycan structures to target glycan-mediated biological pathways. Glycans are carbohydrate structures that latch on to proteins and can be used to regulate different biological pathways in humans.
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Gambillara Fonck was mum on what diseases the new venture will pursue, but the technology can be used for cancer treatments and to modulate immune responses.
The CEO will helm a group of veterans who have worked together for over 15 years at GlycoVaxyn and LimmaTech. At LimmaTech, Gambillara Fonck also served as chief executive and was a co-founder. She has also worked at Allergan in clinical affairs. Other co-founders include Amir Faridmoayer, Ph.D., as chief scientific officer and Dominique Sirena, Ph.D., as vice president of operations and technology. The three also co-founded LimmaTech.