Revolver Therapeutics, a peptide therapeutics startup targeting undruggable cancer proteins, has raised £572,000 in a funding round led by QantX, with follow-on investment from the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), managed by Future Planet Capital, and the University of Bath. Revolver develops peptide-based treatments designed to shut down transcription factors, proteins inside cancer cells that have long been considered impossible to target with conventional drugs. The funding will allow Revolver to develop both its platform and its pipeline of new treatments for colorectal cancer with unmet medical needs.
Transcription factors act as master regulators inside cells, controlling which genes are turned on or off, and in cancer they can drive tumour growth, survival and resistance to treatment. They have proven notoriously hard to target with conventional drugs because they sit deep inside the cell's nucleus and lack the binding pockets that small molecules typically dock into. Revolver's treatments are built around specially designed peptides, small, protein-like molecules, discovered using its proprietary Transcription Block Survival platform, a technology spun out of the University of Bath. The platform finds peptides that can get inside cells and switch off these previously unreachable targets, overcoming a barrier that has held back this kind of therapy.
Revolver Therapeutics was spun out of the University of Bath with support from the Technology Transfer team in Research and Innovation Services (RIS), which helped translate Professor Jody Mason's research into a commercial venture and continues to back the company as it grows. Jody Mason, Chief Scientific Officer of Revolver Therapeutics, said the company has already shown it can stop tumour cells growing in the lab while solving the challenge of getting its molecules inside cells, a hurdle that has held the field back for years, and that the new investment lets Revolver build on that progress starting with colorectal cancer.
This funding is a huge vote of confidence in the team and the science we've built here at Bath. For years, transcription factors have been seen as some of the most important - yet most stubborn - targets in cancer, sitting beyond the reach of conventional drugs. Backing like this is exactly what a spin-out needs to take bold science from the lab and turn it into something that could genuinely help patients. We've already shown we can stop tumour cells growing in the lab while cracking the challenge of getting our molecules inside cells - a hurdle that has held this field back for years. This investment lets us build on that progress, starting with colorectal cancer, and move closer to new treatments for the people who need them most. We're hugely grateful to our investors for believing in what we're trying to achieve - for colorectal cancer and beyond.
Revolver is going after targets that have defeated drug discovery for decades - that's exactly the kind of hard science QantX exists to back. They're a standout example of world-class innovation coming out of the South West of England, taking on one of the toughest challenges in cancer research. By going after targets that have defeated conventional drugs for decades, Revolver could open the door to a whole new way of treating cancer and other hard-to-tackle diseases. We led this round because we believe in Jody's team and the science, and we're proud to keep backing them as they push into colorectal cancer.
We first backed Revolver in 2024, and we're delighted to be doubling down with this follow-on investment. Revolver continues to pioneer an exciting new approach to cancer treatment by targeting transcription factors - proteins that have been tough to tackle in cancer research until now. Their novel platform produces first-in-class, cell-penetrating peptides with an excellent product profile, and with this investment they are now advancing their first therapeutic assets, including into colorectal cancer. We're proud to continue supporting Revolver's team as they bring this innovative science closer to helping patients facing challenging cancers.
We are delighted to see Revolver Therapeutics, a spin-out from the University, continue to attract investment and move forward on its mission to inhibit the transcription factors that are critical for cancer cell proliferation. It's a wonderful example of how university research can grow into a company with the potential to change patients' lives, and we're proud to have supported the team on this journey from the very beginning.
