CN Bio Innovations

CN Bio Innovations is a bioengineering company founded in 2009 that develops organ-on-a-chip (OOC) systems to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of drug discovery. The company is a spin-out from Oxford University and maintains headquarters and laboratories at the Cambridge Science Park in the UK. CN Bio's technology is licensed from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Vanderbilt University.

The company's core business revolves around its PhysioMimix® suite of microphysiological systems (MPS). This platform recreates human organ and tissue micro-architectures in vitro, allowing researchers to generate human-relevant data on drug safety, metabolism, and efficacy early in the preclinical phase. The technology serves as a viable alternative to animal models, particularly where translatability to humans is historically poor. CN Bio offers single-organ models, such as Liver-on-a-Chip, and multi-organ systems that can model interactions between organs like the intestine and liver. The business model includes direct sales of the PhysioMimix® benchtop instruments and consumable plates, as well as providing Contract Research Services (CRS) to clients in the pharmaceutical, consumer goods, and chemical industries.

CN Bio has secured significant funding to support its growth, raising a total of $44.8 million over seven rounds. A notable recent round was a Series B in April 2024, which raised $21 million, led by Bayland Capital and supported by founding shareholder CN Innovations Holdings. This capital is intended to expand its product portfolio and scale commercial operations in key global markets, including the US and Europe. The company has engaged in high-profile collaborations, including a project with the US FDA to validate OOC technology and a $26 million contract with DARPA and MIT to develop a human 'Body-on-a-Chip'. One of its key achievements includes providing critical human-relevant data that supported the FDA's approval for a Phase 1 clinical trial for a metabolic liver disease drug.

The leadership team includes Dr. Paul Brooks as CEO, who brings over 25 years of experience in commercializing biotechnology. Maureen Coleman, a pharmaceutical scientist with extensive experience at GSK, serves as Chair. Dr. David Hughes, who joined in 2010 from GlaxoSmithKline and previously served as CTO and CEO, is now a Scientific Advisor and was instrumental in developing the PhysioMimix® system.

Keywords: organ-on-a-chip, microphysiological systems, preclinical drug discovery, in vitro models, human-relevant data, toxicology testing, drug metabolism, PhysioMimix, alternative to animal testing, 3D cell culture, liver-on-a-chip, multi-organ systems, contract research services, predictive toxicology, ADME, disease modeling, pharmacology, drug development, life sciences, biotechnology