With a test kit that can detect some disease-causing viruses with the ease of clicking a lighter, Onechip Bioelectronics is gaining investors’ attention again through its high-quality R&D.
Chinese genetic sequencing and reagent startup Onechip Bioelectronics (Chinese: 万众一芯) yesterday announced its completion of a Series B+ financing round valued at CNY 150 million (USD 23.54 million).
Qiming Venture Partner (Chinese: 启明创投) led this round. Zhangjiagang Phoenix Technology (Chinese: 张家港凤凰科技) and C&D Emerging Industry Equity Investment Co., Ltd (Chinese: 建发新兴) and existing investors Matrix Partners (Chinese: 经纬创投) and Desheng Fund (Chinese: 德盛基金) also participated in the deal.
The funds will be mainly used for technology development, clinical approval, manufacturing, sales operation and site construction.
Onechip Bioelectronics focuses on developing semiconductor biochips, microfluid labs-on-a-chips and related machines as well as the development, manufacturing, and sales of molecular detecting reagents.
Its main products are gene sequencing machines, portable nucleic acid detection machines and related reagents.
Onechip Bioelectronics’s recent launches include a portable COVID-19 integrated nucleic acid testing kit. The company is also partnering with West China Hospital to work on the clinical trials and certification of the kit.
“This testing kit works just like a lighter. A simple click will start the detection process,” Professor Hu Wenchuang, the founder and CEO of Onechip Bioelectronics, told EqualOcean today.
“Our team is exploring the possibility to apply our kit for the detection of other disease-causing viruses such as human papillomavirus (HPV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and syncytial virus through this ‘lighter’ platform,” said Hu. “This technology can make human disease screening much more efficient. For example, to screen for the cervical cancer, all you need to do is to load patients’ urine samples into the ‘HPV lighter’ and then ‘click’.”
Developing a semiconductor gene sequencing machine with the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) chip technology is currently another focus for Onechip Bioelectronics. Professor Hu said it is designed to deliver gene sequencing service in a faster and cheaper way.
“We hope to make gene sequencing services available for local hospitals even at a small town by reducing the cost. Although we are mainly targeting human diseases, this machine will benefit agricultural sectors as well. It can be used for the diagnosis of plant viruses and animal viruses,” Professor Hu said.
Onechip Bioelectronics was founded by Professor Hu Wenchuang who graduated from Peking University and gained his PhD degree from University of Notre Dame. He has more than 20 years’ experience in semiconductor, nanotechnology and biological testing. With more than 70% researchers on its team, the company aims to develop accurate, portable and cost-effective rapid molecular POCT (point-of-care testing) products.