
New CRISPR Diagnostic Company VedaBio Announces $40 Million Funding & Platform Launch; Unclear Whether Technology Uses Existing Intellectual Property
A biotechnology company named VedaBio has announced the launch of its CRISPR Cascade™ platform. The company, which was recently backed by a $40 million in initial funding from lead investor OMX Ventures and a select group of family offices, including Kleinmuntz Associates, aims to utilize CRISPR technology for molecular diagnostic applications.
VedaBio’s CRISPR Cascade, claims to offer rapid molecular detection of highly multiplexed analytes with high accuracy, without the need for target amplification. The company claims to have analytical turnaround time of under one minute.
CRISPR diagnostics had previously been dominated primarily by two companies, Sherlock Biosciences and Mammoth Biosciences. However, following the issuance of recent patents to Sherlock Biosciences, Mammoth has increasingly focused on therapeutic partnerships. It is unclear how VedaBio’s technology will fit into the current intellectual property landscape in the space.
Sherlock Biosciences announced in February that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted the company the earliest priority patent for the diagnostic application of the Cas12 enzyme. Cas12, unlike the more widely known Cas9 enzyme used for gene editing, is particularly well-suited for detecting DNA and RNA sequences, rather than modifying them. Sherlock, along with its academic collaborators, has already showcased the potential of Cas12-based diagnostics in detecting diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, and COVID-19, offering flexible, high-accuracy, and low cost testing. Sherlock’s CRISPR-based diagnostics leverage two core technologies, amplification and collateral cleavage, as covered by the recently granted patent. First, a specific nucleic acid signature is amplified, allowing the guide RNA to recognize it within a test sample. When the guide RNA identifies the target nucleic acid, the Cas12 enzyme is activated, leading to the cleavage of a fluorescently labeled probe. This cleavage event triggers a reaction, resulting in the release of a fluorescent signal, indicating a positive test result.