Thermo Fisher Scientific Invests in Spatial Proteomics Firm Ionpath

Original from: Genomeweb

Spatial proteomics firm Ionpath said on Wednesday that it has received a strategic investment of undisclosed size from Thermo Fisher Scientific.

Ionpath has been developing multiplexed ion beam imaging (MIBI) technology for quantitative protein imaging with high sensitivity and subcellular resolution down to 350 nanometers. It uses metal-conjugated antibodies to tag proteins of interest and MIBI to ionize samples for mass spectrometry analysis. As of earlier this year, the company's MIBIscope could measure 40 proteins at a time.

"By working closely together with Thermo Fisher Scientific, we can accelerate our development efforts and continue to deliver best-in-class solutions to our customers," said Ionpath CEO Sander Gubbens in a statement. "With this investment, Ionpath will continue to scale our organization in service of supporting the increasing demand for both our MIBIscope instruments and our end-to-end special proteomics services."

"Spatial proteomics has near-term potential to help product breakthroughs in cancer diagnostics and in the discovery and development of highly targeted therapies, and Ionpath's innovation is a driving force," Iain Mylchrees, VP for R&D for analytical instruments at Thermo Fisher, added in a statement.

Ionpath launched in 2014 and raised $18 million in a Series B funding round in 2020, which included Bruker as an investor. Fluidigm — now Standard BioTools — unsuccessfully sued Ionpath for patent infringement in 2019, with a federal court ruling against the firm in 2021 and dismissing its appealearlier this year.

Source: Thermo Fisher Scientific Invests in Spatial Proteomics Firm Ionpath