Northern Gritstone Invests £1.8M in Apini to Target Inflammatory Diseases

Northern Gritstone has committed £1.8 million to Apini, a University of Manchester spinout focused on treating chronic inflammatory conditions like Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis. Apini is the first company to emerge from Syncona’s Slingshot Therapeutics accelerator, which launched in November 2024 with £12.5 million to support promising academic research.

Apini's therapeutic approach targets eNAMPT, an enzyme linked to inflammation, aiming to treat disease without inducing immune suppression—a significant advancement over current options. The programme was founded by Professor Sam Butterworth, known for developing the globally used cancer drug Tagrisso.

The funding from Northern Gritstone, alongside Syncona, will be delivered in three milestone-based tranches. Northern Gritstone’s CEO Duncan Johnson described the investment as a testament to world-class drug development emerging from UK universities. Apini’s work marks a major step forward in addressing the unmet needs of millions suffering from inflammatory bowel diseases globally.