Date: 2013-01-07
Type of information: Fundraising
Company: Drug Response Dx (Germany)
Investors: High-Tech Gründerfonds (Germany) Qiagen (The Netherlands)
Amount: undisclosed
Funding type: financing round
Planned used: The investment will be used to develop a biomarker test kit for rheumatoid arthritis treatment guidance with TNF-alpha inhibitors.
Others: Drug Response Dx (DRDx) has successfully concluded its first round of financing with High-Tech Gründerfonds and QIAGEN. The investment will serve to develop a biomarker test kit for rheumatoid arthritis treatment guidance with TNF-alpha inhibitors. The test is secured by a unique patent platform exclusively in-licensed by the Max Planck Society. It is based on protein biomarkers and enables to predict the individual effectiveness of TNF-alpha inhibitors for each rheumatoid arthritis patient before medication is given.
DRDx has developed a biomarker set and the functional model of a routinely applicable test kit. A proof of concept is already in place for the antibody-based verification procedure in an ELISA format. The required biomarkers can also already be produced in high technical quality and fairly large quantities. DRDx has now to perform the clinical validation of the diagnostic. The company will also test to what extent it can predict the effectiveness of TNF-alpha inhibitors for other indications and the effectiveness of non-TNF-alpha medications for rheumatoid arthritis.
Drug Response Dx GmbH was founded in February 2012 by Dr. Zoltán Konthur, Dr. Jörg-M. Hollidt, Dr. Karl Skriner and Dr. Joachim Rautter. Max Planck Innovation GmbH, as a technology transfer organization, has supported the establishment of the spin-off company from the first business concept to the conclusion of this financing round.
Therapeutic area: Autoimmune diseases – Inflammatory diseases - Rheumatic diseases
