Oxford spinout Argonaut Therapeutics has received $2.6m from JW Pharmaceuticals in return for a 25% stake.

Argonaut Therapeutics, a UK-based cancer drug developer spun out of University of Oxford, has raised $2.6m from pharmaceutical firm JW Pharmaceutical, the Korean Biomedical Review reported on Monday.
JW has obtained a 25% stake in the spinout, making it the second largest shareholder behind university venture fund Oxford Sciences Innovation (OSI).
Founded in 2016, Argonaut Therapeutics is developing treatments that reprogram cancer cells to undergo the body’s natural process of cell death. It currently focuses on glioblastoma and pancreatic and metastatic gastric cancers.
The company is based on research by Nick La Thangue, chairman of cancer biology at University of Oxford.
The funding will enable the spinout to drive further development of its therapy. JW Pharma expects the investment will help it expand its research cooperation with European research institutes and R&D networks.
Argonaut previously obtained an undisclosed amount of seed funding at launch from OSI.