Glasgow-based Mironid has closed a £34m Series B funding round to fund clinical development of its lead treatment for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease, with the Scottish National Investment Bank putting in £8.4m of equity as a new investor.
The size of the syndicate matters as much as the figure. Existing backers Roche Venture Fund, Epidarex Capital, Sofinnova Partners, BioGeneration Ventures and the University of Strathclyde all sit alongside the national bank, giving a Glasgow company access to corporate pharma, transatlantic life-sciences capital and European venture money in the same round.
Mironid was founded through a collaboration involving the University of Strathclyde and Heriot-Watt University. Its work centres on first-in-class small-molecule LoAc drug candidates that target the abnormally high kidney cAMP levels driving cyst formation. Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease is one of the more prevalent rare diseases and the most common hereditary kidney disorder, with limited treatment options.
Chief executive Neil Wilkie said the condition affects “over 12 million people worldwide, with 50% of patients developing kidney failure by the age of 60”.
“Securing funding from such a high-caliber syndicate is a strong validator of our approach to treating kidney diseases such as ADPKD,” he said. “This financing will allow us to progress the clinical development of our lead candidate, bringing us closer to transforming the treatment landscape for patients with rare kidney diseases.”
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Paul Callaghan, investment director at the Scottish National Investment Bank, said the investment “reflects our commitment to backing impactful Scottish businesses with high-growth potential” and would help the company “translate world-class research into clinical progress, commercial opportunity and potential patient benefit.”
For Scotland’s life-sciences base, the round is a test case for whether university research can be funded through the expensive middle stage of drug development without the company moving its centre of gravity abroad. Money raised to run clinical programmes tends to be spent on trial management, regulatory work and specialist staff, so the round should translate into activity as well as balance-sheet value. Neither the company nor the bank disclosed headcount plans.
