University spinout raises angel capital

CanDiag Inc., a UNC Charlotte spinout company focused on early-stage breast cancer detection, has successfully closed on more than $500,000 in syndicated angel capital financing.

The company, founded in 2011 by Pinku Mukherjee, Irwin Belk Endowed Professor for Cancer Research at UNC Charlotte, holds an exclusive license from UNC Charlotte to a patent-pending tumor antibody with diagnostic applications for a wide variety of cancer patients.

With this angel capital financing, CanDiag has met a key due diligence milestone as part of its license agreement with UNC Charlotte. Earlier this year, CanDiag won the grand prize in the Charlotte Venture Challenge, the region’s premiere business plan competition.

“We are very excited that multiple angel groups have invested in us and see the potential of our exciting technology,” said Mukherjee, CEO and chief scientific officer of CanDiag. The terms of the financing provide an option to the syndicate of angel investors to make an additional investment of more than $1 million within the next year.

While CanDiag is initially focused on diagnostics, it holds an exclusive option to license the therapeutic rights to the tumor antibody. Mukherjee’s academic research program at UNC Charlotte has received three years of grant funding for development of future cancer therapeutic applications.

“The University is very proud of CanDiag and everything they have accomplished so far,” stated Brad Fach, assistant director for the UNC Charlotte Office of Technology Transfer. “We have a great partnership with the company and hope they will continue to expand here in Charlotte and add to our growing biotechnology community.”