Achi news desk-
Founded in 2017 by chief executive Dr James McIlroy, EnteroBiotix employs 50 people to develop microbiome medicines to strengthen and restore the gut lining. The company conducts clinical trials of drugs designed to prevent and treat a variety of conditions including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), blood cancer, and cirrhosis of the liver.
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The funding includes £15.7m of new equity and the conversion of £11.6m of loan notes into equity. SNIB provided £6m of new equity, with around £10m from other existing investors including Scottish Enterprise and many small private shareholders.
The funding will be used to advance the company’s lead product candidate, EBX-102-02, through a Phase 2 clinical trial in IBS in partnership with the Functional Gut Clinic. On Wednesday the company announced that the first patient in those trials in the UK had been dosed with the capsule treatment which is being done in Scotland.
Funding will also be used to develop a range of treatments for other conditions linked to a disrupted gut microbiome, including cirrhosis of the liver and hepatic encephalopathy.
Dr McIlroy founded the business while a medical student at Aberdeen University. In 2022 the company opened a new 20,000 sq ft manufacturing laboratory in Bellshill, and also has laboratory space at BioCity in Motherwell.
“EnteroBiotix has been steadily growing its operations over the past three years,” he said. “Currently, the company has around 50 dedicated employees who split their time between different facilities depending on operational requirements.”
Last year the company appointed former Merck executive Elmar Schnee as executive chairman, and earlier this year appointed Dr James Barnes as chief operating officer and Chris Lea as chief financial officer.
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“This significant new investment helps enable our vision of transforming the standard of care for patients suffering from serious conditions linked to the gut microbiome,” said Dr McIlroy. “It will help accelerate the development our innovative products and drives us towards our goal of bringing these innovative treatments to market.
“We are looking forward to working closely with our new partners in [SNIB] and with our existing investors to realize this vision, for the benefit of patients around the world.”
IBS is a chronic relapsing functional gastro-intestinal disorder, with patients experiencing a range of symptoms such as chronic abdominal pain, cramping, bloating and changes in bowel movements – which may include constipation, diarrhoea, or both.
It is estimated that up to one in eight people suffer from IBS-like symptoms, and there is a roughly even split between patients who experience predominantly constipation (IBS-C) versus diarrhea (IBS-D). IBS is considered a significant healthcare and economic burden, with loss of productivity a major contributor.
