Nuclera, a biotech startup born out of Cambridge, has captured attention of many with its revolutionary protein printing technology.
Founded in 2013 by Michael Chen, Jiahao Huang, and Gordon Herling-McInroy, Nuclera recently secured $75 million in a Series C funding round. This round was led by Elevage Medical Technologies and backed by Patient Square Capital. Several prominent investors participated, including British Patient Capital (the UK’s largest domestic investor in venture growth), Cambridge Innovation Capital, Jonathan Milner, GK Goh, M&G Catalyst, E Ink Holdings, Michael D. McCreary, Uni Power Group, and Verve Ventures. The law firm Taylor Wessing advised Nuclera on the transaction.
This latest investment will accelerate the commercialisation of Nuclera’s innovative eProtein Discovery platform, which is already being utilised by leading research institutions and biotech companies globally. The funding will specifically support the continued rollout of the benchtop system, with a focus on expanding its market presence in the U.S. and across Europe.
The UK-based startup’s technology addresses a major challenge in drug discovery: speeding up protein expression and purification. The company’s benchtop system, capable of producing milligrams of high-quality proteins in under 48 hours, offers a drastic improvement over traditional methods that can take months or even years. By automating and streamlining these processes, Nuclera is positioning itself as a critical player in drug development, particularly as AI and structural biology continue to shape the future of life sciences.
The company’s eProtein Discovery platform has already been adopted by major academic institutions like the University of Cambridge and research organisations such as the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology. With the fresh capital, Nuclera aims to expand its reach, particularly across Europe and the U.S., while also exploring the potential for an IPO in New York.
Earlier this year, the company was in the headlines for the potential New York initial public offering.
Dr Michael Wasserman, Chief Operating Officer, Elevage Medical Technologies, commented: “Nuclera has developed a solution for one of the leading obstacles in drug discovery: access to proteins that are needed throughout the drug discovery process. The demand for Nuclera’s technology is expanding rapidly, as AI and structural biology continues to drive the pace of new discoveries in life sciences and drug development. Elevage is proud to support Nuclera and its leadership team as it continues to bring the eProtein Discovery System to drug discovery researchers across the globe to address their need for bespoke, rapid, and convenient delivery of quality proteins.”
Protein expression and purification in labs
Using digital microfluidics, protein quality assays, and cell-free protein synthesis on eProtein Discovery cartridges, eProtein Discovery provides rapid access to high-quality proteins at scale, whether using cell-free or cell-based methods.
It has been installed at contract research organisations (CROs), biotech and biopharma companies, as well as at leading academic institutes, including University College London, University of Cambridge, University of Southampton, University of Manchester, The Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) in Belgium, and the CRUK Cambridge Institute.
Dr Michael Chen, CEO and co-founder, Nuclera, said: “This significant investment demonstrates continued confidence in our team, our eProtein Discovery system, and our potential to revolutionise the way proteins are made. This funding will accelerate our mission to provide ready-to-use benchtop protein screening and making tools to empower protein scientists around the world. We are excited to enhance our support for our customers, enabling them to make proteins for drug discovery more efficiently and effectively for many years to come.”
Dr Jonathan Milner, Chairman of the Nuclera Board of Directors, founder and former CEO of Abcam, Inc and CEO of Meltwind Advisory, added: “The ability to screen multiple protein expression profiles and print purified proteins in as little as 24 hours will revolutionise laboratory workflows and make a demonstrable impact in research and drug discovery timelines. Aligning with Nuclera more closely following my appointment as Chairman of the Board, I am excited as the Company’s pioneering solution continues to be recognised by the industry and demonstrated through this funding round.”
As of the latest updates, Nuclera has raised a total of $145 million funding so far with undisclosed valuation. TFN has contacted their team to get more information on the same.
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