Nkure Therapeutics, an NK cell therapy company, has announced the closure of its pre–Series A round with participation from Endiya Partners, Kotak Investment Advisors, Featherlite and a few angel investors.

Nkure expects to use the investments to complete its manufacturing protocols and complete its preclinical studies for its planned IND submission. This pioneering work brings the startup closer to its goal of delivering world-class CAR-NK cell therapy to cancer patients in India at an affordable price point. 

The company was founded in 2022 by Dr Mahendra Rao (previously Founding Director of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the NIH, USA) and is supported by a highly experienced team of scientists based out of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP) and business leaders with a track record of co-founding some of India’s leading healthcare startups.

Nkure is scaling rapidly from its first year of inception having successfully developed an NK cell platform at laboratory scale coupled with agreements with contract development and manufacturing organisations (CDMOs) in India and the US. It has also secured exclusive licenses to a specialised chimeric antigen receptors or CAR and related technologies to enable allogenic cell therapy, the first of its kind in India. Nkure is the recipient of prestigious grant funding from the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.

Dr Mahendra Rao, Founder and CEO said, “Based on early results, soon to be patented technologies and availability of a world class research facility (C-CAMP), we will bring affordable solutions to cancer patients in India afflicted by late stage leukaemias and solid tumours. This disruptive technology holds promise for treating hitherto incurable cancers.”