Baltimore-based Infinity Bio, an antibody profiling company founded last year, has raised $4.5 million in a funding round led by PTX Capital, Blackbird Laboratories CEO Matt Tremblay announced. Blackbird’s venture arm, Blackbird BioVentures, also participated.
Founded by the duo of H. Benjamin Larman of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Harvard University’s Steve Elledge, Infinity Bio has developed new technology for antibody profiling, which, among other things, can be used to discover disease mechanisms, develop vaccines, and identify immune responses, including for various cancers.
Personalization
Infinity Bio combines cutting-edge technology, known as Molecular Indexing of Proteins by Self-Assembly, or MIPSA, with a practical high-throughput approach, to map antibody reactivity at scale across viral antigens, self-antigens and allergens.
“Infinity Bio was formed to elucidate each individual’s portfolio of antibodies. Our services open new windows to observe, for the first time, how each individual immune system perceives the world, including its own host,” said Larman, who serves as Infinity Bio’s chief scientific officer.
Larman received his Ph. D. in medical engineering from MIT and Harvard Medical School, and a BS in physics and bioengineering from University of California in Berkeley.
New SaaS Model
“So many important disease mechanisms have been shrouded in the mysteries of the immune system. Robust and comprehensive antibody profiling promises to unlock these insights across a spectrum of important human diseases,” said Elledge, Ph.D., Gregor Mendel Professor of Genetics at Harvard University.
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Infinity Bio, which offers a Science-as-a-Service model, has been led by CEO Joy Nassif, a management veteran with significant experience in healthcare firms, since June 2023.
The company’s board includes Caroline Popper, an internist and pathologist associated with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “We’re not merely a service provider; we are partners in healthcare innovation, recognizing the central role of inflammation and immunity in human disease and its treatment,” Popper said last year.
PTX Capital, based in Baltimore, has made six investments since its inception in 2021. Its recent portfolio investment include Pair Team, Scene Health, Delfi Diagnostics and ArrePath. It is led by managing partner Matt Hellauer. Blackbird Ventures’ portfolio includes Modra, ProFlowers, AlloCrypt and Talapa Bio.
