Imagion Biosystems raises $9m with Aussie IPO

Imagion Biosystems (ASX:IBX) said today that it raised $9.1 million (A$12 million) in an initial public offering on the Australian stock exchange for its MagSense cancer-tagging nanoparticles.

The 15.1¢-per-share (A20¢) flotation of 60 million shares is earmarked for 1st-in-human trials, expected during the 2nd half of 2018, the Albuquerque-based company said.

The MagSense nanoparticles have a 25nm iron oxide core and a specialized polymer coating and are designed to work with tumor-targeting biomarkers to attach themselves to cancer cells. Because they behave differently when bound to a cell antibody than when in free circulation, according to Imagion’s website.

“The different magnetic fields produced results in high detection specificity between attached and unattached nanoparticles. In the detection of cancer cells, superparamagnetic relaxometry has been shown to be several orders of magnitude more sensitive than conventional imaging methods,” according to the site.

Imagion is focused on HER2+ breast, ovarian and prostate cancers, which it claims represent an addressable market of $2 billion; the company said it expects to pursue the technology against other forms of the disease.

“The MagSense technology is 1,000 times more sensitive than current imaging methods, yet comes at a lower cost than conventional imaging, in addition to providing a non-invasive alternative to frequently used procedures,” CEO Robert Proulx said in prepared remarks. “The potential of the MagSense technology is evidenced by the incredibly strong board we have been able to attract which includes highly visible and respected professionals. MagSense addresses an important and very large unmet medical need that could dramatically improve outcomes for millions of patients, and we have an outstanding opportunity to create significant shareholder value by developing and commercializing the technology.”

($1 = A$1.32541)

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