US-based microbiotics developer Evolve BioSystems closed a $9m series A round yesterday backed by investors including agribusiness Tate and Lyle’s corporate venturing division, Tate and Lyle Ventures.
The round was led by venture capital firm Horizons Ventures and featured a range of existing, undisclosed angel investors.
Founded in 2011, Evolve is developing probiotics products for infants that encourage good bacteria in the gut while removing harmful bacteria. The company is a spinout of the Food for Health Institute at the University of California, Davis.
The series A funding will go towards pre-commercialisation efforts for the company’s products, which are specifically targeting a microbial imbalance known as dysbiosis that has been associated with conditions such as irritable bowel disease.
Evolve raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding in 2013 from unnamed investors, before UK-based Tate and Lyle invested an undisclosed sum in August 2014.