RevoNA
RevoNA holds huge potential in treating currently ‘undruggable’ diseases by overcoming the challenges associated with targeting RNA.
Conventional approaches are slow and costly, limited by inadequate R&D tools and RNA complexity, resulting in a shortage of crucial data in the field. Next-generation technologies are essential to unlocking the necessary data to drive RNA Drug discovery forward.
RevoNA’s innovative solution integrates a novel high-throughput RNA biological platform, that rapidly amasses premium RNA datasets enriched with diverse information. These comprehensive datasets feed a complementary AI prediction engine build, that will enable RevoNA to significantly reduce the time-to-market for RNA-targeted drugs and make RNA drug discovery affordable at scale.
2022
Start Date
Portsmouth
Location
7
Employees
£800K
Grants
£960K
Equity
The Journey
“While RNA-targeting drugs are at the leading edge of pharmaceutical innovation, the extent to which they can play a key role in reducing disease is dependent on increasing RNA-interaction knowledge at pace. Working as the PhD student associated with Prof Callaghan’s BBSRC New Investigator grant, I explored new ways to study RNA-interactions. Importantly, my work played a key role in developed an innovative technology for studying these in high-throughput, thereby providing a capability to accelerate collection of RNA-interaction information.
To test if the technology would be applicable in a commercial setting, market research was undertaken as part of a BBSRC Pathfinder grant, with positive feedback leading to BBSRC Follow-on Funding and Technology Development grants. I was the lead researcher on these projects which enabled proof of concept demonstration of the technology, and resulted in a patent application, which has now been granted in Europe and the US. Seeing the commercial potential, I then embarked on an Innovate UK ‘Innovation-to-Commercialisation of University Research’ (ICURe) programme. In scoping commercial opportunities, conversations, presentations and pitches were made to around 80 pharma and biotech industry companies. This provided insights and guidance as to the most appropriate route for commercialisation of the technology and its applications, and provided evidence that the spinout route had the potential to leverage the most impact.
Taking the next step to commercialise the technology, I secured a BBSRC-funded Royal Society of Edinburgh Enterprise Fellowship which supported me building my entrepreneurial skills and scoping a solid and robust business plan for forming the spinout company, RevoNA Bio Ltd. I was delighted when, in 2022, RevoNA Bio was incorporated as the University of Portsmouth’s first spinout and it was exciting to have the success of RevoNA Bio’s commercialisation journey recognised in BBSRC’s Impact Showcase 2022.”
Dr Charlotte Henderson; CEO RevoNA Bio Ltd.
Contact Form
New Investor Grant
Pathfinder Grant
Follow on funding & Technology Development Grants
Patent Granted
Academic Collaborations with Pharma
Started ICURe Programme
Startcodon Venture Builder
Enterprise Fellowship
Venture Capital Investment & Innovate UK Funding
RevoNA Spin-out Company
What companies had to say about the Innovate UK ICURe programme?
"The Innovate UK ICURE programme enabled refinement and validation of the commercial potential of our technology."
Dr Charlotte Henderson
CEO RevoNA Bio Ltd
Future Goals
RevoNA aims to revolutionise the discovery of RNA-targeted drugs. With RevoNA’s unique high-throughput RNA biological platform, proprietary datasets and complementary AI prediction engine, it can unlock the potential of RNA therapeutics, making RevoNA asset rich and partner of choice for drug development companies.