BioWorld International Correspondent

LONDON Molecular Skincare Ltd. spun out of the University of Sheffield with £1.2 million (US$1.7 million) in first-round funding to develop treatments and diagnostics for skin diseases around novel targets generated by the human genome.

The money came from Sitka Health Fund VCT plc, Cambridge Research and Innovation Ltd. and Catalyst BioMedica Ltd., the venture capital arm of the research charity The Wellcome Trust. Research on which MSC is based was funded by the trust.

CEO Simon Ward told BioWorld International, “We are a drug discovery company looking for treatments for skin diseases and we already have biological and small-molecule hits for novel proprietary targets in psoriasis and eczema.”

MSC said the majority of existing therapies for skin diseases have broad-ranging effects on diseased cells, causing significant side effects. It has identified targets that selectively drive diseased cells to return to normal. One approach makes it possible to control the rate at which cells divide, thereby guiding rapidly dividing cells, for example in skin cancer or psoriasis, back to normal. Other projects include novel approaches to atopic eczema and irritant contact dermatitis, based on genes that predispose to those conditions.

“The market [in dermatology] is very open, mainly because none of the existing treatments is really good,” Ward said.

The company, based in Sheffield, will take products through to Phase I/II trials before licensing them out. Ward said the company would retain a close relationship with the University of Sheffield, a shareholder, giving it access to research facilities and patients.

“One of our advantages is that we have an active clinic, allowing us to interact with patients and access clinical information and blood samples,” Ward said.

MSC is looking for licensees for a technology it has developed for delivering drugs across the transdermal membrane. “This technology provides a way of avoiding tolerance to a drug developing, something that, although not widely acknowledged, is a significant problem with topical applications at the moment,” Ward said. The company has proof of principle.

The initial funding will last 18 months and MSC now is looking to raise £2 million to £3 million in its second round.