After an eight-year academic collaboration with Glaxosmithkline plc, Kynos Therapeutics Ltd. has spun out of Edinburgh University with a £9 million (US$11.7 million) financing and a phase I-ready program. The company specializes in kynurenine 3-monooxygenase (KMO), a mitochondrial outer membrane protein that is a critical gatekeeper in the kynurenine pathway of tryptophan metabolism, and which regulates inflammation and immunity.