About us
Leucid Bio is a clinical stage biotech advancing CAR T-cell therapies for hard-to-treat cancers. Founded to translate 20 years of pioneering CAR-T research led by Dr John Maher at King's College London (King's), Leucid Bio has developed next generation cell therapies based upon Dr Maher’s novel approach, in which the CAR structure has been redesigned to recapitulate the lateral distribution of signalling domains as observed in natural immune receptors. The technology gives properties to the CAR-Ts that enable them to consistently outperform previous generations of CAR-T therapies in pre-clinical studies; enhancing T-cell potency and generating a persistent long-term response with reduced toxicity.
Our Company
Leucid Bio is a biotech company pioneering next-generation cell therapies for hard-to-treat cancers. Founded to translate 20 years of pioneering CAR-T research led by Dr John Maher at King's College London (KCL), Leucid Bio has Leucid Bio has developed a proprietary portfolio based upon Dr Maher’s novel approach, in which the CAR structure has been redesigned to recapitulate the lateral distribution of signalling domains as observed in natural immune receptors. The technology gives properties to the CAR-Ts that enable them to consistently outperform previous generations of CAR-T therapies in pre-clinical studies; enhancing T-cell potency and generating a persistent long-term response with reduced toxicity.
Leucid Bio is headquartered in London, UK, with operations based at Guy’s Hospital with its GMP manufacturing and clinical lab facilities, enabling it to maintain its patient-centric focus on developing better cell therapies for the benefit of individuals with hard-to-treat solid tumours.
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Our Mission
Our mission is to develop CAR-T therapies to improve treatment outcomes and save the lives of patients with resistant, hard-to-treat cancers, most notably solid tumours.
Who We Are
Leucid Bio is led by a committed and industry-experienced management team with deep scientific knowledge and clinical and commercial expertise in the CAR-T field, supported by a diverse team of passionate and committed staff. Together, the Leucid Bio team has a proven track-record in the engineering of new chimeric immune receptor systems and their translation to the clinic, maximising the likelihood of success in safely and effectively treating hard-to-treat cancers.
Investors
Leucid Bio is backed by leading investors Epidarex, Vulpes Investment Management, 2Invest, Future Fund of the British Business Bank, and Sofinnova Partners. To date, Leucid Bio has raised £15 million of funding.
In 2021, Leucid Bio raised £11.5 million in a Series A financing round. The investment was led by seed investor Epidarex and new investor Vulpes Investment Management, with participation from new investors 2Invest and Future Fund of the British Business Bank, and existing seed investor Sofinnova Partners.
Executive Team
Artin Moussavi
CEO
Dr Artin Moussavi joined the company in May 2019 as the Chief Executive Officer. Prior to joining Leucid Bio, Artin served as Chairman and Chief Business Officer of cell therapy company, TC Biopharm, helping to transform the business from start-up to clinical stage biopharma with over £20 million raised from equity investment and collaborations with global pharmaceutical partners. Before his roles in the cell therapy industry, Artin served as CEO of Lux Innovate applying industrial biotechnology across pharmaceutical, medical device and energy sectors. Artin founded Brathmor Ventures in 2013, investing and working with innovative companies across the biopharma, branded pharmaceuticals and nutraceutical sectors. He began his career as a research scientist at King’s College London focused on cellular immunology. Artin holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Edinburgh Business School, a Doctorate from King’s College London and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Edinburgh.
John Maher
CSO
Dr John Maher is a clinically active consultant immunologist at Eastbourne Hospital and King’s Health Partners. While a visiting fellow in the laboratory of Michel Sadelain, he was the first to engineer and test second generation CAR-T technology in human T cells, building on the pioneering work of Helene Finney in the Jurkat model system. He established CAR T-cell research at King’s College London in 2004 where he leads the "CAR Mechanics" group, which is focused on the development of adoptive immunotherapy using CAR engineered and gamma delta T cells. He is chief investigator of a Phase I clinical trial in which a pan-ErbB targeted CAR-T that he developed is being evaluated in patients with refractory locally advanced/ recurrent head and neck cancer.
Ian Miscampbell
Chair of the Board
Ian was appointed Chair of the Board in 2021 following the successful Series A financing. He is a Managing Partner at Sixth Element Capital and a seasoned financial executive. Ian brings considerable experience in all aspects of the financing and operation of healthcare and biotech companies, including but not limited to: public and private market fundraising; technology in and out-licensing; corporate M&A; and operational management.