Netherlands-based life sciences and materials company Royal DSM has invested an undisclosed sum in IQ Therapeutics, a Netherlands-based antibodies developer for so-called super-bug "Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus" (MRSA) infection, which is said to infect one in 20 people who go to hospital.
Royal DSM was joined in the round by Nom, the investment and development agency for the Northern Netherlands.
IQ said it was working on a range of antibodies for diseases including MRSA and Anthrax. It said in the US 5% of admitted hospital patients are infected by MRSA, which it said was 10% of the total healthcare cost.
Marcel Lubben, vice president of venturing and licensing at Royal DSM, said: "DSM has been an investor since 2008 and believes in the potential of IQ Therapeutics’ unique development products that are addressing a number of serious unmet needs. It is a fertile partnership for both parties as it allows the IQ Therapeutics’ antibodies to be produced at a competitive cost-of-goods level."
IQ Therapeutics was a spin-off from the IQ Corporation, a Netherlands-based pharmaceutical business.