£1m investment in a new cell therapy company

This sophisticated technology seeks to harness the ability of Treg cells to put the brakes on the immune system, offering dramatic benefits for patients. Quell Therapeutics brings together prominent experts from King’s College London, University College London (UCL), and Hannover Medical School in this exciting field, and will tackle conditions involving immune dysfunction such as organ transplant rejection, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

This investment is part of a £35m Series A financing led by Syncona, the FTSE250 company focused on investing in and building global leaders in life sciences.

Quell Therapeutics will move forward under the leadership of Iain McGill who brings 25 years of industry experience to the role. Alongside leading academics in the field from King’s College London and Hannover Medical School, Professors Hans Stauss and Emma Morris of UCL’s Institute of Immunity & Transplantation, will bring their in-depth knowledge of T cell engineering and cell gene therapy clinical trials to the project.

Zickie Lim, who heads up the firm’s Funds, Venture Capital and Investments Team, said:  “It’s really exciting to be in at the start of something that could potentially change the way things are done.  By bringing together academia and commerce, Quell Therapeutics will be at the cutting edge of the research and development of this important field.”