Vancouver, Wash.-based biotech company AbSci raised an additional $65 million to help grow its synthetic biology platform.
The company’s “Protein Printing” technology is used to discover and manufacture complex biological molecules such as antibodies and insulin.
The AbSci platform is composed of two products: SoluPro, a synthetic biology platform based on genetically engineered E. coli, and purification platform SoluPure. SoluPro uses the natural processes of E. coli bacteria to build complex molecules inside the bacteria itself.
“At AbSci, our mission is to revolutionize biopharmaceutical discovery and manufacturing using our Protein Printing technology to enable unprecedented precision and speed,” Sean McClain, founder and CEO of AbSci, said in a statement.
AbSci has 13 different pharma and biotech partners. It recently developed a COVID-19 antibody cell line in 10 days. The 73-person company has raised $100 million to date, including a $15.4 million Series D round raised in January.
Casdin Capital led the Series E round, which included participation from Redmile Group, ArrowMark Partners, and Phoenix Venture Partners. Representatives of Casdin Capital and Redmile Group will join the board as a result of the funding.
“We believe AbSci’s Protein Printing technology has a unique opportunity to support the commercialization of next-generation biologics which have long been considered unmanufacturable,” Eli Casdin, chief investment officer and founder at Casdin Capital, said in a statement. “In addition, AbSci’s differentiated commercial model presents a unique opportunity to share in their partners’ successes with opportunities for a revenue stream from drug development all the way through to approval and commercialization.”
McClain started AbSci in 2011. He was just named an EY Pacific Northwest Region Award winner for Entrepreneur of the Year.
