Accelerator Corp. has backed its 12th startup, a cancer research company that’s attempting to disrupt signaling pathways between tumors and the immune system. Dubbed Oncofactor, the company is just getting off the ground.
But investors, including Carl Weissman of the biotech incubator Accelerator and Chad Waite of OVP, are bullish on the concept.
“The Oncofactor technology platform represents an opportunity to address cancer from the perspective of the immune system” Waite said in a press release.
Other investors in the company include Alexandria Real Estate Equities; Amgen Ventures; ARCH Venture Partners; PPD; and WRF Capital.
The new company is being being led by Sarah Warren, a former Institute for Systems Biology -Accelerator Venture Fellow. Warren previously studied at the University of Washington’s Department of Immunology, and worked directly with Dr. Alan Aderem of the ISB.
Accelerator didn’t disclose how much it is investing in Oncofactor, but a SEC filing indicates that the company has raised $2.1 million of a $5.1 million round.
Formed in 2003, Accelerator is a business incubator which backs early-stage biotechnology companies. Other bets include VLST, Theraclone and Allozyne, all of which have gone on to raise more than $25 million in venture capital each.
Luke Timmerman at Xconomy has more on the science behind the company, as well as a look at the competitive landscape.
